Downtown Atlanta Georgia hit by Tornado

A storm sure can make a mess. Ben Gray / AJC
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Local Storm Report

000
NWUS52 KFFC 150158
LSRFFC

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
958 PM EDT FRI MAR 14 2008

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..

0940 PM     TORNADO          1 NW ATLANTA            33.77N 84.43W
03/14/2008                   FULTON             GA   EMERGENCY MNGR

POSSIBLE TORNADO CAUSED DAMAGE TO THE GEORGIA DOME.
DAMAGE AT CNN ALSO REPORTED FROM MEDIA.


&&

$$

SNELSON

A building on Nassau Street adjacent to Techwood Drive crumbled onto nearby cars when Centennial Park, CNN Center and the Georgia Dome were damaged. Ben Gray/AJC

Makes you re-think the "It Could Happen Tomorrow" series on The Weather Channel.

It Could Happen Tomorrow is a television series that premiered on January 15, 2006 on The Weather Channel. It explores the possibilities of various weather and other natural phenomena severely damaging or destroying America's cities. This includes: a Category 3 hurricane hitting New York City, an F5 tornado destroying Downtown Dallas, dormant volcano Mount Rainier re-activating and destroying towns in the surrounding valleys, a tsunami flooding the Pacific Northwest coast, an intraplate earthquake impacting Memphis, Tennessee, wildfires spreading into the heart of San Diego, a huge earthquake leveling San Francisco, a flash flood in Boulder, Colorado, and a flood in Sacramento.

See It Could Happen Tomorrow Interactive site



Centennial Park and surrounding areas/ Ivan Sian

'War zone' after winds hit downtown Atlanta, Georgia Dome

Storm may be 'nothing' compared to what's coming Saturday, says meteorologist

By BILL SANDERS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/14/08

When the storms hit Atlanta Friday night at its busiest basketball time, they hit hard, leaving the Centennial Olympic Park area looking like what one witness described as a "war zone."

There were injuries, including many abrasions from flying glass, but by midnight it appeared most were not critical.

The storm that made a direct hit on downtown Atlanta was reported widely as a "possible tornado," based on damage reports, radar sightings and the because "some people thought they may have heard a freight train sound" as it passed, said National
Weather Service meteorologist Mike Leary.

Thunderstorms were expected to have passed out of the metro Atlanta area by 2 a.m., but even heavier weather was expected Saturday afternoon and evening.

The storms that hit Atlanta on Friday could be "nothing to compare with what's coming in tomorrow," Leary said.

The worst of the damage and injuries centered on the Georgia Dome, CNN Center and Omni Hotel.

Complete Story Here- http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/03/14/domeburst_0315.html

Curtains hang out of the blown-out windows at the Omni hotel after Friday night's damaging storm. Ben Gray / AJC



Firefighters survey the scene on Marietta Street in downtown Atlanta. Ben Gray/AJC



Downtown Atlanta including CNN Center , Centennial Park, and the Georgia Dome were damaged Ben Gray/AJC



Visitors to the downtown area pick their way through debris in front of the CNN Center after a sever storm ripped through downtown Atlanta on Friday. HYOSUB SHIN / AJC



Photos from downtown Atlanta area near the CNN Center and the Omni Hotel. Justin Keoninh

Photos Courtesy Atlanta Journal Constitution
More Storm Damage Photos from Atlanta Journal Constitution here: http://projects.ajc.com/gallery/view/metro/weather/windstorm0314/ And Here- http://projects.ajc.com/gallery/view/metro/fridaystorm0314/