EF1 tornado in Upson County, Georgia

A National Weather Service survey team found that an EF1 tornado with maximum winds of 95 MPH and a maximum path width of 200 yards began in western Upson County near Roland Road south of Highway 36. In this area numerous trees were snapped or uprooted, power lines were downed and a home sustained significant roof damage. The tornado moved northeast Crossing Reid Place Road and snapping or uprooting more trees. Just before crossing Highway 36 near the intersection with Goshen Road the tornado blew the porch off of a house and continued to down trees and power lines as it moved into the western side of Thomaston. More trees and power lines were downed across western parts of Thomaston along Peachbelt Road and in the Highway 74 and West Main Street areas where the tornado ended. [01/21/17: Tornado #7, County #1/1, EF1, Upson, 2017:008].

Throughout the weekend of the 21st and 22nd, persistent southwesterly upper-level flow brought a series of strong short waves across the region. The atmosphere over central Georgia was unseasonably warm and unstable with strong low and mid-level shear. The first short wave generated a wave of severe thunderstorms across central and south Georgia through the morning and into the afternoon of the 21st that produced numerous tornadoes. Twenty three tornadoes were confirmed in the WFO Peachtree City warning area with 27 total tornadoes confirmed in the state of Georgia, both records for the number of tornadoes in a single day. A second, stronger short wave swept through during the late morning and afternoon of the 22nd bringing another round of severe weather to central and south Georgia. Additional tornadoes confirmed brought the 2-day total to 27 for the WFO Peachtree City warning area and 41 for the state of Georgia, both a record number for a 2 day period.