'Tornado' slams Atlanta

Clear-up crews hauled broken glass and furniture out of central Atlanta streets today and homeowners surveyed damage caused by a possible tornado that caught residents and basketball fans by surprise.

More thunderstorms headed across northern Alabama towards the city today. “We’re bracing for another round of whatever mother nature throws at us,” said Lisa Janak of the state emergency management agency.

The National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for a large area of Georgia, including the Atlanta area, plus portions of South Carolina and Alabama.

At least 27 people were hurt last night, though no injuries were believed to be life-threatening.

All events scheduled for today were cancelled, including the St Patrick’s Day parade.

“It’s a mess,” Janak said.

Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin said the storm was “what we now know was a tornado”.

National Weather Service officials continued to say only that a “possible tornado” hit around 9.40pm (2.40am Saturday Irish Time) as a thunderstorm roared through with wind up to 60mph (96.5kph).

That was just 10 minutes after the weather service issued a tornado warning.

Weather service investigators will examine the wreckage today to decide whether a tornado caused it.

“It does look like it from what we’re seeing,” said Trisha Palmer, a weather service meteorologist in nearby Peachtree City. “The radar sign is very indicative of a tornado but we’ve got to get on the ground to make sure it wasn’t strong winds.”

The storm smashed hundreds of skyscraper windows, blew furniture and luggage out of hotel rooms, crumbled part of an apartment building and rattled a packed sports arena.

Streets around the Georgia Dome, Phillips Arena, the CNN Centre and Centennial Olympic Park were littered with broken glass, downed power lines, crumbled bricks, insulation and the occasional office chair. Billboards collapsed on to parked cars.

The Cable News Network said its headquarters building suffered ceiling damage that allowed water to pour into the atrium, and windows were shattered in the CNN.com newsroom and the company’s library. A water pipe in the building broke, turning a staircase into a waterfall.

“It was crazy. There was a lot of windows breaking and stuff falling,” said Terrence Evans, a valet who was about to park a car at the Omni Hotel when the storm twister hit.

Although a tornado warning was issued, there was no announcement of the approaching storm for the 18,000 fans inside the Georgia Dome for the South-eastern Conference college basketball tournament.

The first sign was rumbling and the rippling of the fabric roof. Catwalks swayed and insulation rained down on players during overtime of the Mississippi State-Alabama game, sending fans fleeing toward the exits and the teams to their locker rooms.

“I thought it was a tornado or a terrorist attack,” said Mississippi State guard Ben Hansbrough, whose team won 69-67 after an hour-long delay under a roof with at least two visible tears.

“Ironically, the guy behind me got a phone call saying there was a tornado warning,” fan Lisa Lynn said. “And in two seconds, we heard the noise and things started to shake. It was creepy.”

Power was knocked out to about 19,000 customers.

A loft apartment building had severe damage to one corner and appeared to have major roof damage.

Fire Captain Bill May said a vacant building also collapsed, with no apparent injuries.

Grady Memorial Hospital, the city’s large public hospital where many of the injured were taken, had broken windows but was operating as usual.

If confirmed, the tornado would be the first on record in the centre of Atlanta, said a meteorologist.