Tropical Storm Debby Does Her Damage

[Hum]

(CNN) -- The outer bands of Tropical Storm Debby lashed Florida on Sunday, spawning two apparent tornadoes in the central part of the state that killed one woman, a county spokeswoman said.

Gloria Rybinski, emergency operations spokeswoman for Highland County, said the twisters destroyed four homes in the southern end of the county and damaged others.

The woman was found dead in a home in Venus, located in the middle of the state roughly between Port St. Lucie and Sarasota, Rybinski said. In addition, a child in one of the affected homes was injured and transported to a hospital for treatment.

The slowly moving center of Debby remains in the Gulf of Mexico, though it's already pounding the region with torrential rain in addition to the perilous winds.

"The rain was coming down sideways and the winds were between 40 to 50 miles per hour," said CNN ireporter Keri Ann Eversole from Redington Beach, about 10 miles east of St. Petersburg. "The rain felt like glass."

Fire and rescue personnel in nearby Clearwater responded to 30 calls in an hour, as of 6 p.m. Sunday, to help people stranded in their cars due to the flooding or needing urgent medical help, the city's public safety spokeswoman Elizabeth Watts said. Beach areas were "basically underwater," as were many side streets and at least two major thoroughfares -- U.S. Highway 19 and Gulf to Bay Boulevard.

And high winds have prompted authorities to shut down the Sunshine Skyway bridge on Interstate 275 connecting St. Petersburg and Bradenton, Florida, said Elizabeth LaRotonda with St. Petersburg police.

A large swath of Florida was under a tornado watch and a flood watch Sunday afternoon, as forecasters warned of heavy rainfall. Several tornado warnings were issued, with twisters possible through Sunday night over west and central Florida.

Louisiana's governor declared a state of emergency Sunday, but the National Hurricane Center on Sunday afternoon canceled a tropical storm warning from the mouth of the Pearl River westward to Morgan City, Louisiana.

A tropical storm warning -- meaning sustained winds of 39 to 73 mph are expected within 36 hours -- is in effect from the Mississippi-Alabama border eastward to the Suwannee River, Florida.

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[bjoswald]

Nothing but rain so far. Hope it stays that way!

[Growled Member]

It's been quiet the last few hurricane seasons but not this year.

[Buttus]

glad it didn't make it to the east coast! whew... altho, we have had record rain