Pike County Times
The Pike County Times, PO Box 843, Zebulon, Georgia 30295. Click here to donate through PayPal. Becky Watts: Phone # 770-468-7583 editor@pikecountytimes.com
 
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Submitted photo. Hwy 109 just outside of the Meansville City limits.
 

Photo courtesy of Carolyn White. Hwy 109 East.
Photo courtesy of Ben Maxedon. Hwy 19 outside of Zebulon.
 
Afternoon Storm Brings Down Power Lines and Trees
By Editor Becky Watts

ZEBULON - A storm with damaging winds blew through Zebulon on Friday, June 17, 2016 just before 4 p.m. Trees were snapped and fell on the roads and powerlines, and power was out for many people within the county. I will continue updating this page as more information becomes available.

Pike County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) Director Jimmy Totten gave an update after 5 p.m. today to advise that there is a lot of damage in the east and central part of our county. "We had over 35 roads closed at different times during storm," he said. "A few are still shut down."

Both Highway 18 and Highway 109 East in Meansville were closed. There was some damage to structures, but Director Totten had heard of no injuries at that time. Pike County Times has not heard of any injuries either. (Thankfully!)

"Our law enforcement, 911 center, both fire departments (Pike County Fire Department and Meansville Fire Department), the Road Department, Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Department of Transportation (DOT), and our citizens did great today. Everyone helped get the roads cleared. We were very fortunate to have only minor structural damage and nobody seriously injured!!!" Director Totten said. "Thanks to all that helped get the roads cleared today. We have a great county!!!"

What Caused the Winds?

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Peachtree City advised me that straight-line winds went through Zebulon this evening and that there were no tornadoes in the state today; however, EMA Director Totten received notification by email after 11:30 p.m. this evening that there is the possibility of a tornado that went through a part of Pike County.

He put the following out by Facebook to keep citizens updated as he had done before and after the storm: "They say they can not rule out a brief tornado around 3:55 p.m. in the area of Hwy 109 and Sullivan Road. That is only area in County that the damage was consistent with rotation. The rest of the damage was consistent with straight line winds. This doesn't mean people didn't see funnel clouds, I am only commenting on the damage we saw. They say the storm that hit Pike was one of the strongest of the day."

The winds took a toll on the county because many were without power after the storm came through. Southern Rivers Energy reportered that it had approximately 2,757 members in Lamar, Meriwether, Pike, Spalding and Upson Counties who were without power after the storm. At 11 p.m. tonight, there are approximately 1,105 members without power. Southern "Every available crew is currently working to restore power as safely and efficiently as possible to all our members," said Erin Cook from Southern Rivers Energy.

She advised by social media earlier this evening that Pike County was the hardest hit with four broken poles that have been identified so far and many downed trees that took wire down with them. "Pole replacement is a lengthy process in good conditions so as we sympathize with members, we ask for patience as crews work to replace these poles in the dark." Click here to see Southern Rivers Energy's outage viewer.

Georgia Power also has customers without power in our area. As of 11:20 p.m., there are 569 customers without power in Pike County and 62 in Upson County tonight. Click here to see Georgia Power's outage viewer.

Closing

Here are some words of advice from EMA Director Totten about downed trees. Do not attempt to move trees with power lines in them and do not cross power lines. He advised that the power companies are working hard to get service back and the Pike County Fire Department and Pike County Public Works have been out clearing roads and will continue until the roads are all clear.

If you haven't signed up for Code Red severe weather alerts, you can sign up here: https://public.coderedweb.com/cne/en-US/1A53E0DEB62F. This service is provided to Pike County residents to let us know when severe weather is coming through the county like tornadoes, severe thunder storms, and flash floods.

This is as up to date information as I have at this time. I'll update with pictures and information as it becomes available. And I have a ton of pictures...

6.17.16
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Photo courtesy of Ben Maxedon. Hwy 19 outside of Zebulon.
 

Photos courtesy of Sheila Mathews of https://the-grip.net.
 

Photos courtesy of Sheila Mathews of https://the-grip.net. Hwy 18.
 

Photos courtesy of Sheila Mathews of https://the-grip.net.

Meansville Road going out of Zebulon.
 

Photo courtesy of Sheila Mathews of https://the-grip.net.

Photo courtesy of Pike County EMA. Hwy 109 East.
 

Photos courtesy of Pike County EMA. Hwy 18.

Submitted photo. Hwy 18.
 

Photo courtesy of Pike County EMA. Hwy 109 East.
 

Photos courtesy of Dorma Blount.
Next to Smoot's just outside of Zebulon.
 

Photo courtesy of Dorma Blount.

Photo courtesy of Tonia Shaw. Trampoline that the wind picked up and deposited at at the Parks & Rec Soccer Field. The owner was located.
 

Photos courtesy of Randy and Heather Holliday. Hwy 18.

Hwy 19 at the split in Zebulon.
 

Photos courtesy of Carol Gillespie. North Upson County.
 

This is the sky right after the storm passed through.