Two tornadoes touched down in Carroll County in west Georgia. The first, an EF3, hit the Smithfield area, just inside the Alabama state line, according to Tim Padgett, director of the Carroll County Emergency Management Agency.
That twister left a path eight miles long and 100 yards wide with winds estimated at roughly 140 mph.
The second tornado was an EF1, with winds of 90 mph. It left a swath two miles long and 100 yards wide.
Despite the major damage in those areas, the county had only three injuries - two requiring hospitalization - and one minor injury, said Gary Thomas, the county's fire-rescue chief.
State Insurance Commissioner John W. Oxendine said the weather caused an estimated $10 million in insured losses to about 1,000 homes.
Thirty-six houses were damaged or destroyed in Carroll County; 15 were reported damaged in Forsyth County. (See separate story).
"That figure may rise as new claims are reported," Oxendine said. "The damage was quite extensive in some areas."
Georgia Power spokesman Jeff Wilson said the number of customers without power rose to 93,000 by 8 a.m. Tuesday, with most outages in the Atlanta area. By 10:30 p.m., service was restored to all but about 1,000, Wilson said.
"We will have crews working throughout the night," Wilson said.
High winds, lightning and rain caused trees and limbs to topple onto power lines. Teams with chainsaws worked through the day to clear the debris across the area.
In Carroll County two houses were destroyed in the town of Bowdon, near the Alabama line.
Linda Bryant, 64, was severely injured when she was blown from her house, according to her son.
"She's in the hospital right now," Matt Bryant told The Times-Georgian of Carrollton. "She was actually fixing to walk out the door and get in the car to go to work. We found her laying about 30 feet behind the house."
Many residents in suburban areas north of Atlanta felt certain they had been hit by tornadoes, but officials characterized the damage as mostly straight-line winds.
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