Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Florida, November 20, 1983

Name: Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Florida, November 20, 1983
Start: 1983-11-20T02:15
End: 1983-11-20T15:30
Location: Florida

November 20, 1983 · NWS AT · 14 events in 12 counties and zones

11 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $2.8 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 14

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

11 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Escambia

When: November 20, 2:15 AM CST
Where: Escambia County
Rating: F1
Path length: 3 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 30.420, -87.220

Thunderstorm Wind, Escambia

When: November 20, 2:15 AM CST
Where: Escambia County
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 30.680, -87.370

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: November 20, 3:45 AM CST
Where: Washington County
Coordinates: 30.430, -85.800

Thunderstorm Wind, Pasco

When: November 20, 10:15 AM CST
Where: Pasco County
Coordinates: 28.370, -82.700

Thunderstorm Wind, Lake

When: November 20, 11:40 AM CST
Where: Lake County
Coordinates: 28.800, -81.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Flagler

When: November 20, 12:15 PM CST
Where: Flagler County
Coordinates: 29.470, -81.430

Thunderstorm Wind, Putnam

When: November 20, 12:15 PM CST
Where: Putnam County
Coordinates: 29.650, -81.630

Tornado, Volusia

When: November 20, 12:26 PM CST
Where: Volusia County
Rating: F2
Path length: 3 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 29.280, -81.050

Tornado, Flagler

When: November 20, 12:30 PM CST
Where: Flagler County
Rating: F2
Path length: 3 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 29.470, -81.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Orange

When: November 20, 12:49 PM CST
Where: Orange County
Coordinates: 28.550, -81.370

Thunderstorm Wind, Citrus

When: November 20, 1:00 PM CST
Where: Citrus County
Coordinates: 28.850, -82.480

Thunderstorm Wind, Brevard

When: November 20, 2:20 PM CST
Where: Brevard County
Coordinates: 28.320, -80.600

Thunderstorm Wind, Charlotte

When: November 20, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Charlotte County
Coordinates: 26.930, -81.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Lee

When: November 20, 3:30 PM CST
Where: Lee County
Coordinates: 26.550, -81.870

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Thunderstorm Wind, Escambia	1983-11-20				Direct

What these are

Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Florida in 1983 Every state in 1983 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Florida, 1983

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10002054, 10002055, 10002056, 10002057, 10002058, 10002059, 10002060, 10002061, 10002062, 10002063, 10002064, 10002065, 10002066, 10002067.