March 14 event March 15 event Atlanta, Georgia This strong and costly EF2 tornado caused the
CNN Center to be severely damaged, including over 1,600 shattered
windows and roof damage which resulted in flooding of the atrium. The
Georgia World Congress Center also sustained serious damage to the roofs of all 3 buildings and to over 4,500 windows, as was the
Omni Hotel, especially the
skywalk between the two hotel towers over Andrew Young International Boulevard. This complex alone lost 476 windows, making it necessary to close the south tower to guests. The
facades of the
Georgia Dome and a
Philips Arena parking garage were damaged while hosting
basketball games. Two of the giant columns in
Centennial Olympic Park were knocked down, and
insulation was stuck in
trees. Trees on some other streets were blown completely down, despite being too early in
spring to involve leaf
drag.
Glass was strewn across several
streets, and
Atlanta Police kept residents,
hotel guests, and
news crews away from buildings with falling glass, which continued to pose a danger into the night. When the tornado hit, a
SEC tournament game between
Mississippi State and
Alabama which had just been sent into overtime minutes earlier by a shot from
Mykal Riley, was in progress at the Georgia Dome and being broadcast live on television. The storm ripped panels from the exterior of the building and tore two holes in the roof of the Dome, causing insulation to fall and the
scoreboard and
catwalks suspended from the roof to sway; much of this was captured on camera, though the transmission from the arena was interrupted. Riley's shot was considered to have saved lives by keeping people safe inside the Georgia Dome. After a 64-minute delay, the game was completed; however the next scheduled game between
Kentucky and
Georgia was postponed. The remainder of the tournament games were played at
Alexander Memorial Coliseum on the campus of
Georgia Tech, with spectators restricted to team and conference personnel, media, team bands, and families of players only due to the much smaller size of the alternate venue. At the nearby Philips Arena, little disruption was noticed by the attendees during the game between the Hawks and the
Los Angeles Clippers, even though damage occurred to the outside of the arena. Twenty-seven people were treated for injuries. All of
CNN's
TV networks remained on the air, but there was damage to the glass roof of the
CNN Center atrium, flooding part of the food court. Additionally, blown-out windows in the ground floor CNN.com newsroom and the fourth floor videotape library caused minor damage. Live
news coverage of the aftermath was carried on
CNN International, in turn
simulcast domestically on CNN until 1 am EDT. CNN resumed broadcasting from their main newsroom at 6 am EDT, showing several parts of the newsroom with computer stations covered with
tarps, the damaged
atrium of CNN Center, and staff using trash cans and buckets to collect dripping rainwater to the right of the anchor desk due to the damaged roof. When more storms moved in later in the day, the network was forced to move all Atlanta on-camera operations to the windowless CNN-I studio, while taped programming was shown for most of the day. The city received emergency assistance from the
Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA),
Highway Emergency Response Operators (HEROs),
Fulton and
DeKalb counties (where Atlanta is situated), and surrounding cities and counties. Atlanta Mayor
Shirley Franklin also declared a
state of emergency for the city and Governor
Sonny Perdue issued a state
state of emergency declaration for Atlanta enabling the city to seek disaster aid from the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). President Bush declared a major disaster on March 20. At the time, it was the most expensive tornado in Atlanta history, in raw U.S. dollars, after the
1999 Bridge Creek-Moore tornado, costing a half-billion dollars.
Bartow County, Georgia On March 15, this intense and destructive EF3 tornado tore across
Bartow County, &
Floyd County, Georgia. At 11:20 AM
EDT,
the Polk county sheriff department spotted a funnel cloud in northern Polk County. The funnel then touched down north of Seney, Georgia. It caused minor to moderate damage before strengthening to EF2 intensity. It remained mostly over rural forests, but then strengthening to EF3 intensity. It damaged a metal building system on Live Oak road, which a
National Weather Service ground & aerial damage survey team would assign it an EF3 rating with wind speeds up to 150 mph. It caused intense roof damage to a home on Bon Loop road, which was outside of the EF3 intensity core. One fatality and one injury were at this location. Still sustaining EF3 winds, it swelled to half a mile wide. It began shrinking in diameter, but then briefly strengthening and causing all walls to cave in onto a poorly built home on Old Wax Road, where one woman was killed, and a man in the same home was seriously injured. The man would be sent to a hospital in
Rome, Georgia. It went over rural forests, weakening to EF2 intensity, although still causing intense damage to trees. It moved just south of Old Alabama road, weakening further into EF1 intensity. Homes along Old Alabama road would receive moderate damage to roofs and windows. The tornado was now a mile and a half north of
Taylorsville, Georgia. It would move east, causing weak damage to forests and homes, but on Shiloh Church road, it rapidly intensified back to EF3 intensity. One home along Old Stilesboro road would be flattened, although homes next to it would have relatively minor damage. 500 yards northeast of this home, an electrical line collapsed. It impacted a power plant near this location. It then weakened back to EF2 intensity over forests. The Taylorsville elementary school would receive notable damage. Multiple homes on Popum road had significant roof damage. Multiple trees on Euharlee road were toppled over. Woodland high school had severe damage inflicted. It sustained EF2 winds for the next few miles before passing south of Valley Oak Acres, Georgia. It then slowly continued weakening before roping out 1 mile northwest of Parkerosa, Georgia at 11:32
EDT. == See also ==