One of the storm bands that hammered Georgia on Wednesday cut a path several miles long in Webster County, damaging several mobile homes and destroying a large commercial building.
Four suspected tornadoes hit Georgia, according to the Associated Press. Possible tornadoes were reported in Newton, Randolph, Webster and Dodge counties.
Mark Cox owned what was the Webster Farmers Inc. building in Weston that housed fertilizer and other chemicals off Highway 520.
He sent his crew of about 10 home around 11 a.m. as heavy rain and thunder rolled through.
Cox got a call from an employee, who is also a volunteer firefighter, just after 12:30 p.m.
"He said: ‘You need to come back down here, because it's a mess'," Cox said.
The building's backside was demolished. Part of a tin roof on a neighboring building was ripped off, too.
"I'm out of business ‘til I can get it fixed," he said, picking up stray debris outside the damages structures early Wednesday evening. "It'll take a few days to get back to work, but we'll be OK.
The man looked at the splintered wood and mangled mess that was his farm building.
"I can say the good Lord looked after us today,” he said.
Trees in the middle of misty wooded areas in Webster had been ripped up by their roots by early evening.
"That did some damage, huh? I've got some cleaning up to do," said Sammy Vanover, who lives off Highway 520, as he pointed at the downed trees.
Vanover said he's never seen anything like during his 43 years, all spent in the area.
Follow the AJC's coverage: Significant weather advisory for parts of metro Atlanta
"I'm done living in a mobile home," he said, though his trailer went unscathed.
He said he’s been living in that trailer for 4 or 5 years.
But the storm has him ready to move.
Watch: Severe storms cause flooding cause watershed vehicle to stall
Staff writers Ben Brasch and Janel Davis contributed to this story.
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