April 27, 2024
At least three deaths were attributed to storms Tuesday that pummeled the South with heavy rain, wind gusts and tornadoes.
Police south of Atlanta said a man died when a tree fell on his car on a state highway in Jonesboro.
Near Cottonwood, Alabama, a small city near the Georgia and Florida borders, an 81-year-old woman was killed when her mobile home was tossed from its foundation, the Houston County coroner said. A suspected tornado had touched down in the area.
Storm-related injuries were reported in Florida, but no deaths. Homes in a section of Panama City Beach, Florida, had roofs blown off, furniture, fences and debris strewn about. One house appeared tilted and leaning on another home.
The Walton County sheriff’s department in the Florida Panhandle posted photos of power lines draped across a road, damage to a gas station and large pieces of building materials littering the area. About 70 miles northeast, in Jackson County, Florida, photos showing damage to a campground and RV park in Marianna were posted.
The National Weather Service office in Tallahassee is planning to send out three tornado survey teams on Wednesday to examine suspected tornado damage in Walton, Bay and Jackson counties in Florida. Two more survey teams will go out on Thursday to look at Houston County, Alabama, and Calhoun County, Georgia.
Heavy rain across Georgia stopped air traffic at Atlanta’s busy airport for a time Tuesday morning and caused flash flooding, blocking some lanes on freeways around Atlanta during the morning commute. More than 80 public school systems across Georgia called off classes entirely while others taught students online or delayed the start of in-person classes.
More than 200,000 customers were without power in Florida, Alabama, and Georgia, while nearly 150,000 people in North Carolina lacked electricity, according to the PowerOutage.us website.
In North Carolina, one person has died and two others were in critical condition after a suspected tornado struck a mobile home park in the town of Claremont, north of Charlotte, said Amy McCauley, a spokesperson for Catawba County. And in Rocky Mount, downed power lines shut down both directions of I-95, one of the nation’s busiest highways, the North Carolina's Department of Transportation said in a statement
A possible tornado knocked down several old brick storefronts in downtown Bamberg, South Carolina, blocking the main intersection through the city about 60 miles (96 kilometers) south of Columbia.
Thousands of bricks blocked U.S. 301, the main road through that part of the state; about 40 homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed, said Democratic Rep. Justin Bamberg, who represents the area. No injuries were reported.
