Public Information Statement
Issued by NWS Atlanta, GA
Issued by NWS Atlanta, GA
935 NOUS42 KFFC 202111 PNSFFC GAZ001>009-011>016-019>025-027-030>039-041>062-066>076-078>086- 089>098-102>113-210915- Public Information Statement National Weather Service Peachtree City GA 511 PM EDT Mon May 20 2024 ...NWS Damage Survey for 05/08/24 to 05/09/24 Tornado Event Update # 4... .Update...After further investigation by Gilmer County EMA and the Georgia Forestry Commission, in coordination with NWS Peachtree City/Atlanta, three (3) additional tornado tracks have been confirmed within multiple areas of fairly significant damage. The 3 new tornadoes in Gilmer County are listed below, followed by the 5 other tornadoes that impacted parts of north and central Georgia between the overnight hours May 8-9th and into the afternoon of May 9th (central GA). Update from May 14th: A deeper investigation into the Dodge/Laurens/Wheeler county tornado found that there were 3 separate shorter tornado tracks as opposed to 1 long track. This update removes the longer track and updates with the 3 shorter tracks including an 1 EF1 and 2 EF0 paths. Official Tornado Count from this event: 8 .Tails Creek Road Tornado (Gilmer County)... Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 90 mph Path Length /statute/: 0.76 miles Path Width /maximum/: 200 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/08/2024 Start Time: 11:26 PM EDT Start Location: 2 SW Tails Creek / Gilmer County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 34.6724 / -84.6408 End Date: 05/08/2024 End Time: 11:28 PM EDT End Location: 1 SSW Tails Creek / Gilmer County / GA End Lat/Lon: 34.6706 / -84.6276 Survey Summary: Aerial and ground surveys revealed a fairly significant yet brief swath of damage on either side of Tails Creek Road (Hwy 282) from a tornado. Most of the damage was to trees with hundreds of them either snapped or uprooted in a path that was less than 1 mile. Little to no additional reports of damage has been documented beyond Woodridge Drive and Tails Creek Road/Hwy 282. Based on the extent of the tree damage, confidence is high that max winds were around 90 mph, making this a very brief EF-1 tornado. .Weeks Road / Little Brook Farm Tornado (Gilmer County)... Rating: EF0 Estimated Peak Wind: 85 mph Path Length /statute/: 0.98 miles Path Width /maximum/: 250 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/08/2024 Start Time: 11:46 PM EDT Start Location: 3 E Mountaintown / Gilmer County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 34.7428 / -84.5015 End Date: 05/08/2024 End Time: 11:48 PM EDT End Location: 3 N Ellijay / Gilmer County / GA End Lat/Lon: 34.7434 / -84.4852 Survey Summary: A northern circulation embedded within a relatively fast-moving Quasi-linear Convective System (QLCS) spawned yet another short- lived tornado across Gilmer County just before midnight on May 8th. This tornado touched down over the property of Little Brook Farm #1 between two sets of chicken houses, with numerous trees either snapped or uprooted. No notable structural damage was seen around the chicken houses. Additional tree damage, some down on homes, occurred as the tornado crossed Weeks Road and Carson Cove Road. No further damage was seen beyond Wd Court. The damage was indicative of high-end EF-0 (max winds 85 mph). .Owltown Road to Mt Zion Road Tornado (Gilmer County)... Rating: EF0 Estimated Peak Wind: 85 mph Path Length /statute/: 1.94 miles Path Width /maximum/: 200 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/08/2024 Start Time: 11:51 PM EDT Start Location: 2 SE East Ellijay / Gilmer County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 34.666 / -84.4484 End Date: 05/08/2024 End Time: 11:54 PM EDT End Location: 3 NW Cartecay / Gilmer County / GA End Lat/Lon: 34.6619 / -84.4148 Survey Summary: Another brief tornado likely associated with the same severe storm that spawned the tornado across Ellington Road and Old Hwy 5, cut across Owltown Road, just east of Hwy 52E. Numerous trees were either snapped or uprooted on either side of Owltown Road. The tornado then produced more tree damage along Mt Zion Road before no additional damage was seen. ..Dodge County Tornado... Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 90 mph Path Length /statute/: 12.18 miles Path Width /maximum/: 0 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/09/2024 Start Time: 12:50 PM EDT Start Location: Dubois / Dodge County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 32.3056 / -83.2747 End Date: 05/09/2024 End Time: 01:00 PM EDT End Location: 3 SE Plainfield / Dodge County / GA End Lat/Lon: 32.2439 / -83.0843 Survey Summary: An EF1 tornado with maximum winds at 90 mph touched down Thursday, May 9th at At 12:50 PM EDT. EF0 damage to trees was observed along Cochran Hwy roughly a tenth of a mile northwest of the center of Dubois. The tornado tracked southeastward crossing Wilson Woodward Road where a swath within a stand of hardwood trees in a field were snapped and uprooted. The tornado continued southeastward paralleling Bell Line Road before turning ESE and lifting up a metal roof off the awning of a home and snapping large branches from trees. The tornado then crossed Bell Line Road and lifted shingles off the roof of a home and lifted the roof off of a small outbuilding. A little further southeast the tornado intensified to its strongest point where EF1 damage to trees was observed on Chester Highway and in the woods along Gum Swamp Road. As the tornado approached the intersection of Gum Swamp Road and Dublin Hwy, EF1 damage was observed as well as EF0 damage to a small outbuilding. A TDS signature appears on the KJGX radar near the beginning of the EF1 damage along Belt Line Rd and remains visible through the Dublin hwy damage. The tornado continued east southeast producing EF0 tree damage generally along and north of a line paralleling Glyen Hickman Road/Golden Road before turning eastward and dissipating. ..Southern Laurens County tornado... Rating: EF0 Estimated Peak Wind: 75 mph Path Length /statute/: 8.61 miles Path Width /maximum/: 100 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/09/2024 Start Time: 01:06 PM EDT Start Location: 6 N Jay Bird Springs / Laurens County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 32.2267 / -83.0107 End Date: 05/09/2024 End Time: 01:17 PM EDT End Location: 3 SSE Cedar Grove / Laurens County / GA End Lat/Lon: 32.202 / -82.8763 Survey Summary: An EF0 tornado with maximum winds of 75 mph first touched down to the NW of HWY 46 just inside the Laurens County line 46 where EF0 tree damage was observed before turning to the southeast through mostly rural and wooded areas along Alligator Creek before crossing Dublin-McRae Hwy where it snapped a few trees. A TDS briefly appeared on KJGX radar within the largely swamp/lowland area. Per both radar and damage noted on the ground, the tornado began to occlude as it shifted to a northeasterly path and dissipate near the convergence of the Laurens/Dodge/Wheeler county lines east of Hwy 46. ..Wheeler County/Alamo tornado... Rating: EF0 Estimated Peak Wind: 80 mph Path Length /statute/: 7.18 miles Path Width /maximum/: 150 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/09/2024 Start Time: 01:18 PM EDT Start Location: 4 N Little Ocmulgee State Park / Wheeler County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 32.1536 / -82.8758 End Date: 05/09/2024 End Time: 01:25 PM EDT End Location: 1 E Alamo / Wheeler County / GA End Lat/Lon: 32.146 / -82.7566 Survey Summary: An EF0 tornado with maximum winds of 80 mph touched down to the NW of the town of Alamo north of Blue Jay Road snapping a few small trees. The storm continued east southeast crossing Little Rock Rd snapping trees a few trees. The storm crossed mostly swamp/lowland area before crossing North Broad St on the north side of Alamo snapping and uprooting a few trees. When the tornado entered the town of Alamo, EF0 damage was observed to a small outbuilding where a wall had collapsed, a canopy on a former service station had been damaged, a free standing light pole had been downed, glass broken out of a small retail store and a few fences blown down. The tornado dissipated as the overall storm weakened once it moved through the small town of Alamo .Ellington Road/Old Highway 5 South (Gilmer County) Tornado... Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph Path Length /statute/: 0.64 miles Path Width /maximum/: 150 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/08/2024 Start Time: 11:42 PM EDT Start Location: 2 SW East Ellijay / Gilmer County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 34.6641 / -84.5084 End Date: 05/08/2024 End Time: 11:44 PM EDT End Location: 2 SW East Ellijay / Gilmer County / GA End Lat/Lon: 34.6662 / -84.4977 Survey Summary: Evidence of a tornado occurred very near the intersection of Ellington Road and Old Highway 5 South, a little more than 2 miles south-southwest of Ellijay in Gilmer County. The tornado destroyed parts of 2 single-story storage units (made of tin/metal) as well as a Georgia Forestry building that houses large equipment. Based on the damage at these locations, it is estimated the tornado had wind speeds between 90-100 mph (EF-1). As the tornado crossed Old Highway 5 South, additional minor roof damage along with a few small to medium trees snapped. The last of this damage was seen near the CSX Railroad just north of the Progress Road and Casey Drive intersection. NOTE: this damage **may** be part of a longer track tornado or multiple tornadoes from the same complex of severe storms, but due to complex terrain (difficulty accessing any roads in forested areas), further investigation (by air) is currently happening. Updates are likely in the next several days. .Montgomery/Toombs County Tornado... Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 90 mph Path Length /statute/: 14.7 miles Path Width /maximum/: 250 yards Fatalities: 0 Injuries: 0 Start Date: 05/09/2024 Start Time: 01:39 PM EDT Start Location: 3 S Kibbee / Montgomery County / GA Start Lat/Lon: 32.2466 / -82.5416 End Date: 05/09/2024 End Time: 01:54 PM EDT End Location: 1 SE Lyons / Toombs County / GA End Lat/Lon: 32.1912 / -82.3136 Survey Summary: An EF1 tornado with maximum winds of 90mph touched down on Thursday May 9, 2024 at 1:39PM EDT in an unpopulated area northwest of Higgston GA along hwy 227 where a few trees were downed along both sides of the hwy. The tornado tracked southeastward through a mostly wooded unpopulated area before reaching the community of Higgston. Trees were snapped along Saw Mill Road to the west of Higgston. The tornado reached EF1 intensity as it reached Hwy 15 and Azalea Dr where numerous trees were snapped including several onto homes, outbuildings and cars in that area. The tornado continued eastward along Hwy 280 snapping and uprooting trees crossing the Montgomery and Toombs county line continuing to parallel hwy 280 to the south. As the tornado entered the city of Vidalia, trees and powerlines were downed throughout the city, particularly south of the downtown area in the 7th to 9th street area along Adams street. In the downtown area, a roof off of one of the buildings along Church street was peeled off and thrown into the parking areas below. The tornado continued ESE crossing Center Dr, Estroff Dr, Aimwell Rd, and through the Cambridge Ct region where EF1 damage to trees and homes was observed all along that route. The tornado continued eastward crossing the Vidalia airport property. It should be noted that the last observation from the Vidalia airport occurred 10 min prior to the tornado crossing through. The tornado continued eastward toward the Lyons community and across the Lyons Elementary, Middle and High school complexes. Minor, EF0 damage was observed in and around the schools mostly to trees, fences, and to doors on some storage buildings. The tornado continued east crossing Hwy 1 downing a few pecan trees and numerous limbs before dissipating as it approached hwy 280 southeast of Lyons. Additional straight line wind damage was observed south of the path including in the community of Santa Claus. && EF Scale: The Enhanced Fujita Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories: EF0.....65 to 85 mph EF1.....86 to 110 mph EF2.....111 to 135 mph EF3.....136 to 165 mph EF4.....166 to 200 mph EF5.....>200 mph NOTE: The information in this statement is preliminary and subject to change pending final review of the events and publication in NWS Storm Data. $$