Severe weather hits central Florida

Tornado touches down in FloridaSTORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: 25 homes in Hillsborough County were damaged by the stormThunderstorm and tornado warnings are in effect until 8 p.m. ETReports that an airport building collapsed, trapping 70 people, are false, police sayFlorida's emergency management office says it has deployed personnel to the airportCheck out CNN affiliates Bay News 9 and WFLA-TV in the Tampa area for the latest developments.

(CNN) -- Severe weather tore across central Florida on Thursday, causing damage and spawning an apparent tornado in Tampa, the National Weather Service said.

A heavy storm with strong winds hit the Sun 'n Fun aviation fair at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport, causing "extensive minor damage and reports of minor injuries," but "all persons so far have been accounted for," said Sgt. Terri Smith of the Lakeland Police Department.

The National Weather Service had reported a building collapse that trapped 70 people at the airport, but that report was false, Smith said.

The Sun 'n Fun International Fly-In & Expo is a six-day aviation-themed festival that provides the primary source of funding for Sun 'n Fun, a nonprofit organization, and its wholly owned subsidiary, the Florida Air Museum.

Greg Lane, a Sun 'n Fun volunteer who is working with a low-power AM radio station at the airport, said the "sky went from gray to black to bluish green" as the storm rolled in.

"You couldn't see the tents that were 50 feet across the drive from us," he said.

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