BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. -- At least two people were injured and 54 homes damaged when a tornado touched down in Brevard County as Tropical Storm Fay moved through Central Florida Tuesday afternoon.

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IMAGES: Tornado Damage

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Barefoot Bay resident Frank Amoretti reported seeing a tornado touch down in the vicinity of Brown Road and Puffin Drive west of U.S. 1 in Brevard County Tuesday afternoon.

"I saw the swirling and stuff and there was a lot of debris and everything," resident Frank Amoretti said. "As quick as it came in, it looked like it went right back up. It looks like part of a house or part of a roof and a couple of carports and a lot of aluminum and insulation and construction barricades from Mico Road."

Brevard County reported 54 structures were damaged by the tornado and nine of them were completely destroyed.

The tornado was confirmed to have touched down about an hour after it was reported, Local 6 meteorologist Eric Wilson said.

The National Weather Center had issued a tornado warning for Brevard and Osceola counties before the damage reports.

Fay continued to move through the area without weakening much, according to National Weather Service official David Sharp.

"What is of concern for us is the stubborn character of Fay in general and it is sort of refusing to weaken," Sharp said.

There were also reports of tornado touchdowns in Martin County that did some damage to a gas station and flipped over a car, Local 6 meteorologist Rob Eicher reported.

The storms moved into the region Tuesday afternoon.

"I would say Indian River County, Vero Beach area and then Brevard County from Sebastian up to Melbourne and even into southern Osceola County, I think they are in the pickle barrel right now," Sharp said. "So, we will be watching those carefully."

Normally, tornadoes inside tropical cyclones are not as strong as tornadoes embedded in cold fronts.

"You usually don't get the strong F-3s or F-4s," Eicher said. "You might get a weak F-1 or F-0 inside a tropical cyclone."

Storm Slows

Meanwhile, heavy rain being dumped on Central Florida could continue for days as Tropical Storm Fay moves toward the Atlantic for another chance to strengthen and threaten Florida again.

"The worse thing that can happen is that people forget about Fay and deal with the rain showers as they happen and say the weekend is coming," Local 6 meteorologist Eric Wilson said.

The National Hurricane Center's path of projected movement showed the storm slowing and moving through Melbourne.

"That is the first time I've seen the official track bend out into the Atlantic and that is important," Wilson said.

Wilson said trends show Fay could gain strength and become a hurricane if it moves into the Atlantic.

"Indications are she is going to strengthen in the Atlantic and we are just going to have to hit the reset button and find out whether she comes back as a hurricane," Wilson said. "That is where the trend is. There is a question mark when it comes to Thursday and Friday. Does she stay on this path and leave us alone?"

The VIPIR computer model that handled Fay the best before it made landfall in Florida shows the storm possibly reaching hurricane status and moving into north Florida.

A northern path could be problematic for Georgia later this week, Wilson said.

"This very well could affect our Thursday and Friday, especially into the weekend," Wilson said.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this developing story.