Ron Brackett
Severe storms in the South have left a trail of damage after spawning tornadoes, destructive winds and large hail across multiple states.
A possible tornado damaged semitrailers and vehicles on Interstate 35E near Waxahachie, Texas, on Monday night. At least three people were transported to a hospital from the scene, according to WFAA.com.
Shortly after 2 p.m. Monday, a damaging tornado was confirmed near Elberton, Georgia. It caused a warehouse to collapse, but no injuries were reported. The storm moved across the South Carolina state line, prompting tornado warnings in Abbeville County and into Greenwood, Laurens and Newberry counties. A second tornado was reported in Abbeville County about an hour later.
Students sheltered in place in Abbeville and Greenwood county schools, WYFF reported.
The severe storms that rolled across Mississippi overnight produced reports of more than a dozen tornadoes.
So far, one death, a driver in Douglasville, Georiga, has been reported because of the storms.
In Mississippi, homes were damaged and trees and power lines were downed in Tupelo, where a rare tornado emergency was issued.
"Tornado emergency for Tupelo! This is a life-threatening situation! Take cover now!" tweeted the National Weather Service office in Memphis, shortly before 11 p.m.
(MORE: Severe Thunderstorms, Flooding Rain Possible in the South, Plains Through Tuesday)
In a Facebook post, the mayor's office said, "Please do not get out and drive. It is dangerous."
Residential damage was extensive near the Elvis Presley Museum area, according to a NWS report.
Damage also was reported in Tupelo's Park Hill neighborhood, WTVA reported.
The storm ripped the roof off a home and flipped a car on Ranch Road, according to WTVA.
Damage was also reported at Tupelo Middle School and in neighboring Pontotoc County.
About 45 miles to the southeast, Calhoun City also was hit by a possible tornado.
"The town of Calhoun City was hit hard tonight. Light poles have been snapped off. Trees in a few homes. Trees on vehicles. Damage to several businesses. Fortunately, we have had no reports at this time of injuries," Calhoun County Sheriff Greg Pollan said in a Facebook post.
Images from the city showed a gas station's metal canopy ripped to shreds. Others showed huge trees toppled from the ground and utility poles teetering in the wind.
Earlier Sunday, a tornado was reported in Yazoo City.
"We do not have any injuries reported but (we do) have numerous damaged structures," Yazoo County Emergency Management Director Jack Willingham told CNN.
A mobile home was split when a tree fell on it in Byram, just southwest of Jackson.
Neighbors told WJTV they had to pull the couple that lived there out of the rubble.
There were 19 reports of tornadoes across the entire state of Mississippi on Sunday evening. The actual number of confirmed tornadoes the storms produced will be known once the NWS surveys the damage.
Tense Moments for Atlanta
The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado touched down in Fulton County southwest of the Interstate 20 and Interstate 285 interchange about 10:20 a.m. Monday. Tornado warnings were issued for Fulton and DeKalb counties until 11:15 a.m. A severe thunderstorm warning continued in DeKalb and Gwinnett counties.
Atlanta Public Schools ordered students to shelter in place. Officials at Georgia Tech and Emory University also told people to take shelter.
More than 5,700 homes and businesses in Fulton County were without power as of 12:30 p.m., according to poweroutage.us.
The storms also caused delays at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department tweeted that it had responded to a number of calls for trees down along the Cascade Road corridor southwest of downtown. The tweet said there were no reports of any significant injuries or trees down on homes.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms tweeted photos of damage in her neighborhood.
Significant debris was seen in South Fulton, a city on the southwest edge of Atlanta. The Pepsico factory on Fulton Industrial Boulevard was damaged, according to WAGA. An air conditioner was ripped off the roof and ceiling tiles were knocked down inside the building.
Video shot outside another business in the area showed an overturned semitrailer tractor.
In Douglasville, about 20 miles west of Atlanta, a tree and power lines crashed down onto a vehicle on Campbellton Street near Woodrow Avenue, Douglas County spokesman Rick Martin told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The driver was crushed and died after fire crews cut him from his vehicle, Martin said. He was the only person in the vehicle, and his name was not released.
The Atlanta area appears to have gotten a big break. There was no tornado watch in effect when the warning was issued Monday morning. The watch was raised about eight minutes after the warning, according to weather.com meteorologist Jonathan Erdman.
The warning covered more than 700,000 people, Erdman said. The tornado appeared to lift around I-285, otherwise it could have plowed into several large subdivisions southwest of downtown Atlanta.
Kentucky Tornado Report
A possible tornado was also reported in Tompkinsville, Kentucky, on Monday morning.
WKRN-TV reported that Monroe County dispatchers said there was “significant damage” across the city, which is about 70 miles northeast of Nashville.
Numerous trees and power lines were down, the dispatchers said.
The National Weather Service office in Louisville said a survey crew would inspect the damage in Monroe County to determine if it was caused by a tornado.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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