Update 1:11 p.m.: Gainesville’s tornado watch was cancelled late this morning. Alachua County is in the clear.
Original story: A tornado watch is in effect across north central Florida and southeast Georgia until 3 p.m. Tuesday.
As of 10:50 a.m., the counties under watch in Florida are Clay, Duval, Marion, Nassau, Putnam and St. Johns.
Andrew Shashy, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Jacksonville, said the cold front is moving fairly quickly to the northeast. He urged residents in the threatened area to monitor the situation.
He said tornadoes could hit the area because of moisture and changing wind speeds from a cold front.
Most of the activity will be east of Alachua County after noon or 1 p.m. Tuesday, he said.
As of 9:15 a.m., portions around Gainesville had seen some of the heaviest rain. He said people were reporting that trees have been knocked down in parts of Gainesville, mainly in the northwest side.
Updates and additional information are available at http://www.weather.gov/jax or by calling 904-741-4370.
