Friday, July 8, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Fayette rocked by tornadoes By JOHN MUNFORD Fayette County residents got two tornado scares during Wednesday nights severe thunderstorms, which brought between three and five inches of rain to the area in a two-hour period early Wednesday night, according to the National Weather Service in Peachtree City. The storms caused significant amounts of damage throughout the county, and several motorists endangered their lives in Peachtree City when their vehicles got stuck in flood waters. Several vehicles became stuck on MacDuff Parkway near the entrance to the Summit Apartments in Peachtree City. Another vehicle was stuck on Kelly Drive at the spillway for Lake Peachtree, and another two were stranded at the intersection of Peachtree Parkway and Hwy. 54. In all cases the motorists and passengers were able to escape unharmed, officials said. Four residents at the Tinsley Mill Condominiums were evacuated by Peachtree City rescue crews, including at least two by boat, officials said. About half of Fayette County suffered from a power outage at one time during the storm, Nelms said. The gas pump canopy collapsed at Creekside Chevron on Ga. Highway 54 West during the storm, said acting Peachtree City Building Official Art Bernard. The collapse was due to rainwater that collected on the roof of the canopy, ultimately causing it to fall on a car, Bernard said. Fortunately, no one was injured, Bernard added. A lightning strike occurred at the Kirklands store at The Avenue shopping center, causing a hole about six inches wide and roughly two feet high, Bernard said. The event knocked out power to the store. The other significant area of damage in Peachtree City was to shops on Hwy. 54 west, including the Tires Plus and Wireless Toys stores, which were flooded by quite a bit of mud and water running off from the Hwy. 54 construction area, Bernard said. Multiple streets in Peachtree City were flooded by clogged storm drains all over the city, and public works crews worked Thursday morning to rectify the problems, officials said. Ga. Highway 54 was impassable for a brief period near the Chick-fil-A restaurant and also at Northlake Road. Several downed trees and downed power and utility wires were also reported, but none caused any significant damage, officials said. The Peachtree City Fire Department called in all its volunteers to assist with the increased workload. Mud covered the parking areas next to the First Presbyterian Church of Peachtree City, off Willowbend Road, the aftermath of an unnamed brook rising to flood proportions within a few minutes Wednesday night. It was that same stream in which a Peachtree City man lost his life when he was swept into a 100-foot culvert running under Willowbend Road next to City Hall. That story is also in this issue. Power outages were reported in Fayetteville, crippling the shopping centers on the southside including the Towne Center Kroger and the Summit Point Publix. Multiple traffic lights were also disabled during the power outage. Flooding was one of the biggest problems countywide, Nelms said. The worst areas for flooding included Marnelle Mobile Home Park, the Tinsley Mill condos, Willowbend Road near Peachtree City Hall, and the area of Westbridge Road and Wagon Wheel Trace, Nelms said. Also, the intersection of Stanley Road and Gingercake Trail was impassable due to flooding. In terms of road blockages, the worst area by far was on Hilo Road and Merrydale Drive, which remained closed late Thursday morning as crews worked to dispose of multiple trees and utility poles that fell, Nelms said. Also, Ga. Highway 92 south in the Woolsey area was blocked for some time at Hills Bridge Road, Nelms added. County road crews were out all night working to get roads cleared, Nelms said. One of the roofs was damaged at the New Hope Baptist Church north campus, Nelms said, and Dal Tile off the north 85 parkway received significant roof damage, he added. In Fayetteville, a downed tree struck an apartment building at Hightower Apartments, said Bill Rieck of the Fayetteville Fire Department. Also, flooding was reported in the areas of Circle Drive, Buckeye Lane and Heritage Lake Drive. During the storm, the department ran a number of calls for downed utility wires and other medical calls, Rieck said. Several motor vehicle accidents were reported in the county, most due to striking debris in the roadway, Nelms added. There were also reports that several cart paths were washed out in Peachtree City, but the city largely escaped damage from fallen trees. A roof damage scare was reported at Photocircuits, but it was soon determined that the water leakage didnt come from the roof, but rather from a burst sprinkler pipe, Bernard said. The American Red Cross was on standby in Fayette in case families needed assistance with housing, but it turned out no one needed that help, Nelms said. The countys Emergency Operations Center was activated at 10:30 p.m. to coordinate storm relief efforts by the various agencies involved, Nelms said. Hartsfield International Airport received about five inches of rain during the storm, NWS officials said. Nelms witnessed the storm as it unfolded over Fayette on his way back from the Riverdale area. Ive never seen anything like it, he said. Citizen editor Cal Beverly took shelter under the drive-through at the Coweta-Fayette EMC building at Sumner Road just east of Peachtree City. The building had closed for the day as winds swirled from several directions and pea-sized hail fell. In the middle of that, with lightning popping nearby and gale-force winds swirling around the building, an EMC customer drove up, got out of her van and deposited a payment into the night depository drawer and then drove off into the storms fury. A shaken editor waited several more minutes before leaving the shelter. The countys emergency alert system, which broadcasts a warning tone from multiple loudspeakers, was activated twice to warn residents of impending dangerous weather, said Capt. Pete Nelms of the Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services. The first activation came after 7 p.m. and the second came around 10 p.m., he added. Several tornado warnings were issued by the National Weather Service Wednesday night, but it was unclear at press time whether or not Fayette or Coweta counties were actually hit by one or more tornados, NWS officials said. NWS teams were still in the field observing damage in surrounding counties and Fayetteville. The teams were trying to determine if the damage they surveyed actually was caused by tornados, according to a NWS meteorologist. Coweta County residents were the first to be alerted by the National Weather Service with a tornado warning at 8:50 p.m., one minute after the radar showed a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado six miles southwest of Senoia and about 11 miles south of Peachtree City. At 9:08 p.m., a tornado warning was issued for all of Fayette County after the storm had moved to within 10 miles southeast of Peachtree City. The storm was moving north at 20 mph at the time, and was near Fayetteville, according to the warning published by the National Weather Service. With additional reporting by Cal Beverly.
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