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Near 60-mph gust, quarter-sized hail reported from Sarasota storms

Severe weather knocked out power to some, though most outages have been restored as of Thursday morning.

SARASOTA, Fla. — Power in the Sarasota area appeared to be restored after strong thunderstorms rolled through Wednesday evening.

Florida Power & Light's online outage map showed only a handful of outages remaining early Thursday morning. According to the utility company, repairs should be made by the end of the day at the latest.

The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning yesterday evening because of the threat of 60-mph wind gusts and quarter-sized hail. That appeared to be just about on the mark, with a 59-mph gust reported at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport.

Quarter-sized hail — about an inch in diameter — is considered severe, and that's what was spotted in the area of the Fort Hamer Bridge over the Manatee River, according to a weather service report. The storms also caused significant damage to power lines, cars and trees in the area of 43rd Street and Old Bradenton Road, according to WWSB-TV.

Rain chances are on the lower side Thursday afternoon and evening, with any showers and storms that develop forecast to form across inland areas and push toward the Gulf Coast. The big weather threat over the next day or two will be the heat as temperatures climb into the mid and upper 90s.

The heat, along with the humidity, will make it feel in excess of 100-110 degrees at times across parts of the Tampa Bay area.

Showers and storms are possible each day into the weekend, with the better rain chance coming Sunday, according to 10 Tampa Bay meteorologist Grant Gilmore.

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