Crime & Safety

Deadly storms rip through the area

Three people were killed in close proximity to the Smyrna-Vinings area early Thursday evening as a result of the severe weather.

Violent storms ripped through the metro Atlanta area during Thursday evening’s rush hour resulting in at least three deaths.

All three of the people killed were in close proximity to the Smyrna-Vinings area, which was littered with fallen debris, power lines and toppled trees of varying sizes Thursday night.

Two women were killed when a tree fell on their vehicle at 3835 Paces Ferry Road, just across the Chattahoochee River and not far from The Lovett School, Atlanta Police said.

Find out what's happening in Smyrna-Viningswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the two Decatur women were killed when the tree fell on their Mazda Miata, which was traveling south on Paces Ferry Road at Nancy Creek Road, according to Atlanta Fire Battalion Chief Bryant Tate. Their car swerved out of control and hit a mailbox, authorities said, according to the newspaper.

The women have been identified as 61-year-old Marion Irwin, the driver of the Miata, and her passenger, 64-year-old Geraldine Grady, according to the AJC.

Find out what's happening in Smyrna-Viningswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A 19-year-old Mableton man died after he was crushed by a tree in the driveway of his home on the 200 block of Stroud Drive, said Sgt. Dana Pierce of Cobb police.

Alonzo Terry Daniel was clearing debris from in front of the house when the tree was uprooted, Daniel's mother told police.

Cobb emergency personnel arrived on the scene immediately after they were called at 6:08 p.m., Pierce said.

Members of the emergency personnel were able to unpin Daniel and transport him to , where he died as a result of his injuries, Pierce told South Cobb Patch.

Several trees were reported down throughout the Smyrna-Vinings area. A fallen tree prevented traffic from passing at Woodland Brook and Polo Lane in Vinings. Not far away, a large tree temporarily blocked southbound traffic at South Atlanta Road near Cumberland Parkway. Parts of Cooper Lake Road were also impassable for a time Thursday night while fallen wires blocked off a section of Shawnee Trail in the heart of Smyrna.

Numerous pockets in the area also suffered power outages and as of 10:30 Thursday night, Georgia Power indicated that 133,000 customers were without power in metro Atlanta, with no estimated time that power would be restored. Crews were being brought in from around the state to help. Call 888-891-0938 to report outages.

- Patch staff members Louis Mayeux and Kiri Walton contributed to this report.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.

More from Smyrna-Vinings