Rare Christmas twisters rake Florida

At least seven twisters, two of them of F2 strength, disrupted Florida Christmas celebrations Monday as a line of violent thunderstorms swept across the state. Hardest hit was the central Interstate 4 corridor from Tampa to Daytona Beach, where twisters damaged and destroyed numerous homes, and injured several people. One F2 twister with winds estimated at 120 m.p.h. hit the airport at the Embry Riddle Aeronautical Institute at Daytona Beach, totally destroying 20 planes and damaging 30 others. The responsible storm system is heading north and is expected to lay down a blanket of heavy snow up to a foot deep in a band from western New York to northern Maine. By comparison, Chicago’s Christmas weather was benign with seasonable temperatures in the 30s and no precipitation that impacted holiday travel. The city may not be as lucky for next week’s New Year’s celebrations, which may be plagued by heavy rain that should change to snow. —By Steve Kahn, WGN Weather Center Meteorologist