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Published Thursday, February 19, 2009 in Local

'One of our bigger tornadoes'

By Elizabeth Richardson

The Times-Herald

Meteorologists with the National Weather Service in Peachtree City confirmed Thursday that it was an EF2 tornado that struck southern Coweta County sometime around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Meteorologist Robert Beasley said the tornado -- which had wind speeds between 111 and 135 miles per hour -- first got on the ground momentarily in Meriwether County just across the Coweta County line north of Luthersville. The funnel touched down in Coweta at 923 Bradbury Road in Grantville, which is three miles west of South Highway 27 Alternate. From there, the tornado headed east and was on the ground for eight miles across south Coweta County.

"The path width was about a mile wide, making it one of our bigger tornados," said Beasley.

The tornado traveled to Haralson in the far southeast corner of the county on State Highway 85 and continued into Spalding County. The total path length, according to Beasley, was about 20-25 miles with "no distinct segments more than two miles in length" in which the funnel was not on the ground.

According to the meteorologist, the tornado damaged about a dozen homes in Coweta along its path.

"We really saw the enormity of it today," said Coweta Sheriff Mike Yeager on Thursday. "It's been wild."

Emergency calls in the wake of the tornado began coming in between 8:15 and 8:30 p.m., depending on which road residents lived on, according to Coweta Emergency Management Director Jay Jones. At least two dozen houses sustained some type of storm damage -- some more extensive than others.

Jones spent much of the day Thursday with National Weather Service crews out assessing the damage, by aerial photography and ground exploration. Jones said the results indicate the tornado was part of a "super cell" traveling approximately 65 miles per hour.

Jones said the tornado also touched down near Lowery Road and continued through the unincorporated areas of Bigby and Brooks, through Haralson and into Spalding County.

"There are no injuries that were reported," said Jones. "A lot of homes were damaged, but no one was hurt because people took the proper precautions by taking cover."

In hindsight, Sheriff Yeager was pleased with the emergency response following the tornado Wednesday. "Everything went well," he said.

On Thursday, the cleanup continued and individual homeowners began assessing damage to their property. "Our work is to patrol and assist in any way -- especially the power companies as they work to restore power," said Yeager.

Jeff Wilson, of Georgia Power, reported that about 1,000 customers were without power overnight Wednesday beginning around 7 or 8 p.m.

"The tornado hit around the Highway 54 area in Grantville and broke seven power poles -- and there was no way to reroute electricity," said Wilson. Thursday morning, there were only about 60 customers without power, and the electricity provider expected those customers to be back online by late Thursday.

According to Wilson, those power poles have a fuse in them designed to cut power when they fall. "Still, anytime you see one on the ground, don't assume it's dead," said Wilson. Georgia Power cuts the power to downed lines for safety purposes.

Approximately 2,000 Coweta-Fayette EMC customers lost power in the two storms that struck Coweta Wednesday night.

The hailstorm that blew through northern Coweta around 6 p.m. knocked out service to approximately 1,000 customers in the Palmetto and Tyrone areas, said Mary Ann Bell of Coweta-Fayette EMC. Crews were able to restore power to those areas before the second storm hit, Bell said.

The second storm knocked out 1,000 customers in the Moreland and Haralson areas, Bell said, and snapped 11 power poles.

By Thursday afternoon, most customers had their power restored. At 3:30 p.m., there were 64 customers still without power in the south Coweta area.

There were reports of damage -- either as a direct or indirect result of the tornado -- on Al Roberts Road, Fincher Road, Bear Creek Road, Hines Road, U.S. Highway 27 Alternate, Highway 54, Eastside School Road near Gordon Road and Robinson Road. There was also damage in the Harlson area on Rowe Road and Gray Girls Road, according to Jones.

Portions of Interstate 85 both northbound and southbound in Coweta County had to be shut down Wednesday night because the storm system brought heavy rain that flooded the interstate.

Jones says the county is working to improve its emergency notification procedures. They are currently looking into new products, including one called Code Red that would allow residents to register a contact number online and then be personally notified of severe weather threats.

"This is a trend growing throughout the United States," said Jones. "We're trying to decide now which product would give us the best bang for the buck."

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