Afternoon thunderstorm brings down trees, power lines in 2 counties

Storm knocks tree onto chicken coop in Middleburg

MIDDLEBURG, Fla. – A powerful afternoon storm brought down trees and power lines in both Clay and Bradford counties, officials said. 

The storm rolled in around 4 p.m. and knocked a tree onto a chicken coop in Middleburg. Debbie Williams sent News4Jax several pictures of a tree that was knocked down in her backyard. 

Some neighbors along BlueJay Drive spent their evening cleaning up the mess after heavy rain and wind tore through.

"We noticed there was a lot of lightning and lots of wind and then the rain came out of nowhere. Then I just started hearing pops left and right," said Pam Love.

Minutes after the storm stopped, Devon Ray noticed this power line down, right across from his home. Others reported several trees down in neighboring areas.

"At one time, I actually thought it was a tornado outside. That's how bad it was. Trees blowing in all different directions, picking up stuff. Blowing it all around the yard and across the street and whatnot," Ray said.

Several neighbors reported losing power and others realized just how close their houses came to being hit. Like Pam Love. Her neighbor's tree fell onto her chicken coop.

"When I heard the big boom from the back, I just grabbed the big umbrella and ran thinking that I was going to become She-Woman and pull that tree off my babies. Of course that didn't happen. That didn't happen, but it was very, very scary." 

In Bradford County, trains had to be stopped in Hampton after a tree fell onto the tracks.

Officials said they were monitoring reports of trees down in various locations but had no reports of further damage.

Officials also said there were no reports of injuries. 


About the Authors:

Ashley Harding joined the Channel 4 news team in March 2013. She reports for and anchors The Morning Show.