Broward County residents clean up after Hurricane Ian’s outer bands spawned tornadoes, flooding

BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. – Broward County residents spent their Wednesday and Thursday mornings cleaning up damage from one of several tornadoes that hit Broward County Tuesday night, spawned by the outer rain bands of Hurricane Ian.

In interviews with Local 10 News, residents recounted the unforgettable moment the twister moved through their area.

Rob Harvey was in his home on Northwest 87th Avenue when he suddenly sought safety inside an interior bathroom.

“I was on my bed, looking at my computer when my phone went off, saying there was a tornado alert. I barely got to my front door, and all of sudden, all hell broke loose,” Harvey said. “When they say something about the freight train, oh, take it to the bank.”

The tornado uprooted trees, damaged roofs and cars and bent street signs.

Pembroke Pines homeowner Sean Hivon told Local 10 News that his house sustained extensive damage from the effects of Hurricane Ian.

“Parts of the roof (are) gone, our backyard is fully destroyed, my dock on my backyard is fully gone,” said Hivon.

Local 10 viewer Jesus Rubio sent in video Tuesday night of strong winds hitting the Publix on Sheridan Street and Pine Island Road near Brian Piccolo Park.

Residents like Kevin Porter are now working through pockets of flooding and more problematic downed trees after his backyard patio, pool and fence in Miramar were destroyed.

“The screen doors was rattling and there was (a) swooshing sound -- it wasn’t for long,” said Porter.

A confirmed tornado flipped quite a few small planes at North Perry Airport on Tuesday night, proving that very few things can stand up to mother nature’s fury.

North Perry Airport reopened on Thursday.

There is still a lot of damage that has to be cleaned up throughout Broward County, and even more so on the Gulf Coast.

Viewers are encouraged to refresh the page for the very latest updates or visit our Hurricane section on Local10.com.