20,000 without power countywide; restaurant in Edgewater damaged

NSBNews.net video by Sera Frederick / Winds whipped up considerably from mid-afternoon Sunday where this video footage was shot from Riversie Park in New Smyrna Beach overlooking the Intracoastal Waterway. The winds grew stronger through the evening with gusts of up to 60 miles per hour in some parts of the county. The highest winds reported in New Smyrna Beach were 54 mph about 9 p.m. At left is the radar from the Weather Channel showing the southern coastal area of Volusia County during the early Monday hours.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Pounding rain bands and wind gusts of up to 60 mph have forced people indoors where as many as 20,000 utility customers are without power countywide early this Columbus Day morning. 

During the overnight hours, the roads were desolate in New Smyrna Beach.

"It's nasty out here," NSB patrol Sgt. John Kosorok said. "We have a lot of power lines down, but most people are staying off the roads."

"It's nasty out here," NSB patrol Sgt. John Kosorok said. "We have a lot of power lines down, but most people are staying off the roads."

A 10-by-10 foot area of the roof was torn away from the Chick-fil-A restaurant at the intersection of U.S. 1 and State Road 442 about 8 p.m., Sgt. Ted Richard reported from the Volusia County Sheriff's Communications Center.

The sign at Cove Motel in the 1300 block of A1A on the beachside of Daytona Beach was sheared off by a strong gust of wind earlier in the evening, he said, adding power lines are down and traffic lights out at countless roadway intersections up and down the coastal areas from Ormond Beach down to Oak Hill.

Asked about motorist activity, Richard said, "We have accidents all over the place," but none resulting in fatalities as of midnight. Several roads are flooded in the vicinity of Beach Street in Daytona Beach and a couple of secondary roads off Dunlawton Avenue in Port Orange, he added.

A spokeswoman with Florida Power & Light said about 20,000 customers were without power well into the evening. NSBNews.net was not able to reach anyone from the New Smyrna Beach Utilities Commission, though several homeowners reported they were without electricity.

A flood warning and a high surf advisory have been issued for the coastal cities of Volusia County, including New Smyrna Beach. Below is the weather conditions for greater New Smyrna Beach from the National Weather Service in Melbourne.