Strong storms produced a waterspout off the Gandy Bridge and caused some damage to a nearby motel Tuesday evening.

Pinellas County was under a severe thunderstorm warning for about 45 minutes.

Jason Salvotore was driving with his girlfriend on the Gandy Bridge when they saw the waterspout.

“We were pretty excited actually. I wanted to roll down the window, she wanted to roll up the window. But we were pretty excited but we just love nature and the power that it can convey,” said Salvotore via Skype.

They decided to pull over on the St. Petersburg side and shoot video of it.

“It’s great video but when you’re there in person and you look around and see all the lightning hitting around you and see a giant waterspout in front of you, it’s pretty intense,” he said.

Damage was reported at the Sahara Motel on Gandy Boulevard in St. Petersburg.

People say the storm seemed to come out of nowhere and the next thing they knew debris was flying everywhere.

Two large boat awnings now sit in the parking lot. Motel guests say the skies got dark, it started pouring and they heard a loud noise.

Power lines were knocked down, forcing emergency crews to close lanes on Gandy while they worked on repairs. Motel guests said that the boat awning damaged several cars in the parking lot but no one was injured.

Parts of Hillsborough and Pasco counties were also hit with rough weather that included heavy rain, lightning, and gusty winds.

A special marine warning for the Gulf waters and for Tampa Bay was issued and has since expired.

"Today was another one of those days where the storms drifted in from the east and they got stronger because they ran into our sea breeze sitting still near our coastline," said Meteorologist Brian McClure.

McClure said another round of scattered thunderstorms will pop up Wednesday in the late afternoon/evening. Rain chances are 50 percent.