As winter transitions into spring, the weather battle has begun. The days in the southeast are warming, but as cold fronts dip into the area with the jet stream, severe weather brews.
Yesterday was such a day. A powerful system moved through the south, dropping large hail, blowing dangerous winds and even spawning a couple of tornado reports. Some of the hail reports suggest hail over 4 inches in diameter, which is about the size of a grapefruit. The more common reports reported 1.75 to 2.5 inches in diameter, ranging in size from golf ball to tennis ball, with the largest reported hail in Georgia being 2.75 inches, about baseball-sized hail, in Stockbridge. Severe hail has the potential to injure people and property.
National Weather Service - Peachtree City hail page
In the wake of the storm, many residents and power companies in the southeast are dealing with widespread trees and power lines coming down in the severe winds. Some fell into homes and roadways. The most significant wind report suggests a possible tornado near Seney, Ga., where the Silver Creek Mini-Mart was destroyed and 12 homes were damaged between Cave Springs and Silver Creek. Unfortunately, 6 people sustained injuries resulting from that portion of the storm.
Severe thunderstorm watches and tornado watches were issued throughout the area for most of the day, with frequent warnings being issued as the storm system made its way to the south and east.
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