More severe weather across North, Central Florida

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At least 6 dead after over two dozen tornadoes touch down across South

Polk County, Texas is hit hard by the deadly storm system that took residents by surprise; Casey Stegall reports.

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Severe weather warnings remained in effect Friday for North and Central Florida, threatening hail, damaging winds and isolated tornadoes.

Tornado watches and warnings northwest of Gainesville accompanied the system responsible for two days of severe weather across the South as it moved into Florida Friday.

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Severe storms and tornadoes tore through the Southeast Thursday, killing at least seven people, destroying buildings and leaving thousands without power, according to The Associated Press. Nearly a dozen tornadoes were reported in the past 48 hours.

Accuweather advised that those heading to recently opened beaches Friday should remain alert to rapidly changing weather conditions.

"The main threats from the storms on Friday will be for strong wind gusts and torrential downpours," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Randy Adkins said.

There is also the potential for an isolated tornado or waterspout.

SEVERE STORMS LEAVE DEADLY MARK ON SOUTH AS TORNADOES REPORTED

The same system struck across the heartland earlier in the week, moving through Texas and Oklahoma, and into Louisiana by Thursday evening.

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More than 150,000 businesses and homes from Texas to Georgia were without power as the severe weather blew eastward, snapping utility lines as trees fell, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.

Bradford Betz and The Associated Press contributed to this report.