‘I was just trying to get the babies to safety:’ Crews clean up after E-F1 tornado hits Coweta

COWETA COUNTY, Ga. — Crews are cleaning up after an EF-1 Tornado swept through parts of Coweta County on Memorial Day.

The National Weather Center confirmed the tornado after widespread damage was left behind.

“The sirens across the road … they were going off … our phones were going off,” resident Rene Young told Channel 2′s Audrey Washington.

Young said she ducked for cover with her grandchildren when the high winds and heavy rain hit the area.

“I was just trying to get the babies to safety,” Young said.

The National Weather Service confirmed that an EF-1 tornado made a brief touchdown during strong storms on Monday.

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The tornado had estimated peak winds of 90 mph. It started near Payton and Boone Roads in the northwest portion of the county at 8:23 a.m. It stayed on the ground for roughly two minutes and 3.48 miles.

Despite the damage and downed power lines, there were no reported injuries.

“Seeing those larger pines that were snapped off about 20 feet, it looked like there was some rotation to it,” said Michael Terrell, director of Coweta County Emergency Management.

Crews surveyed the area and cleared the debris from the roads.

Most of the power is restored.

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There were only a few cable wires still down on Wednesday afternoon.

“If there are any poles broken those go up first and then the powerlines go up next and last is the phone and cable lines,” Terrell said.

“It was scary,” said Young.

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