Precipitation was localized, albeit heavy, in South Florida. Rainfall peaked at in Plantation Key on September 8. The weather station in Big Pine Key observed the second highest state rainfall total at . Elsewhere, rainfall spread as far northward as Tampa Bay. Although intense, the rains helped partially alleviate a concurrent drought in the Everglades. No damage was reported in association with the rainfall. A total of three tornadoes formed in association with Betsy, of which two occurred while the major hurricane was landfalling in South Florida. On September 8, a tornado developed and track near Marathon, while another occurred near Big Pine Key; both tornadoes caused no reported damage. However, a waterspout formed near Fort Walton Beach off the Florida Panhandle the following day and later destroyed a marina with twelve boats. The relatively low number of tornadoes that formed as a result of Betsy was due to the anomalously rapid forward motion that Betsy traveled at during its traverse of the Florida peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico. Overall, five people were killed in the state, and damage totaled $139 million, primarily due to the strong storm surge generated by Betsy.