Local

Tornado touchdown confirmed in north Georgia

GILMER COUNTY, Ga. — The National Weather Service in Peachtree City confirmed an EF1 tornado with maximum winds of 95 mph touched down in Gilmer County Wednesday.

The damage path was 1.7 miles long. The tornado was a maximum of 300 yards wide.

The tornado was part of several storms that took down numerous trees and damaged power lines.

"We didn't know what came through here. We were just surprised,” Krystal Russo said.

Russo and her family just moved to northern Gilmer County a month ago.

“We got alerts on our phones. We retreated downstairs to the second level and stayed there,” she said.

The Russo family braced for Wednesday evening's storm to pass.

“The wind just picked up within about five minutes and got so strong,” she said.

Russo said the winds snapped two of her large trees, leaving the family without power for a day.

“Thankfully it didn't fall on the other house, thank the Lord, and it didn't fall on the car. We were very blessed and very, very lucky this time,” she said.

Channel 2 Action News followed Peachtree City's National Weather Service as they surveyed damage throughout Gilmer County Friday.

Keith Stellman, Meteorologist in Charge for the National Weather Service, not only assessed tree damage, but also eyewitness photos provided by the Gilmer County's Sheriff's Office of what could be the tornado that caused the damage.

Despite the number of trees downed, there were no injuries reported, leaving Russo with a peace of mind.

“As long as we were okay, it was okay,” she said.

The NWS did tie the circulation to the ground. They said the tornado was on the ground for less than two miles.