Hurricane Ethel also brought heavy rains and strong winds to much of the Florida Panhandle. A maximum of of rain fell at an agricultural experiment station near Milton, Florida, the highest total measured at an official station and attributed to this storm. Hurricane Donna struck Tampa, Florida, particularly hard earlier in the month, causing major flooding of Hillsborough River (Florida) at Zephyrhills, Florida on 12 September. People feared severe flooding of the Hillsborough River into Tampa, which did not occur. The highest wind gust in the state was , measured in both Pensacola and Apalachicola. A thunderstorm associated with Ethel produced lightning that hit a power station near Tallahassee, causing a citywide blackout for . According to Florida Highway Patrol, Ethel directly caused damage of $100,000 (1960 USD) in the state. Additionally Ethel spawned four tornadoes in Florida, one of which reached F2 intensity and damaged or destroyed 25 homes near Panama City.