Today Marks 50th Anniversary Of Hurricane Eloise

(Crestview, FL) -- Today marks the 50th anniversary of a major hurricane that hit the Panhandle. Hurricane Eloise made landfall on this date in 1975 in Okaloosa County near Fort Walton Beach. Eglin Air Force Base reported a peak wind gust of 115 miles an hour and almost 15 inches of rain. The storm surge in Destin measured over 10-and-a-half feet. The National Weather Service says the wind caused extreme tree and crop damage. It's estimated that at least 85 percent of the buildings between Fort Walton Beach and Panama City were severely damaged or destroyed. Still, there were no deaths directly blamed on Eloise.