UPDATE: Macon to see large hail, possible tornadoes Wednesday night, Weather Channel says
UPDATE 2:45 p.m. — The Weather Channel predicted “large hail” and a possibility of tornadoes in Macon late Wednesday afternoon and early evening Wednesday, according to their website. The site predicts a big spike of rain around 3 p.m. and another at around 6 p.m.
The National Weather Service website says “portions of central Georgia” will likely experience frequent lightning and hail, according to a Wednesday update.
ORIGINAL — The National Weather service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Peach and Houston counties Wednesday morning amid severe weather that could last most of Wednesday.
NWS located a severe storm in Fort Valley moving east at 40 mph just after 9:30 a.m., the National Weather Service said in the warning. Residents should expect 60 mph wind gusts and potential property damage. The warning ended at 10:15 a.m., though much of the area remained under flood watch until Thursday evening.
The flood watch in place also applied to several other counties including Bibb, Jones, Monroe and Crawford, among others.
The Bibb County School district announced on Twitter that they would release all summer programs early Wednesday due to severe weather. Elementary school programs will let out at noon, while middle and high school programs dismiss at 1 p.m.
The Twiggs County School District closed all schools at 11:30 a.m. and canceled all summer activities, according to a press release.
The storm comes after the NWS predicted severe weather throughout the Middle Georgia area. A meteorologist with the office said Tuesday that there could be up to 2.5 inches of rain in the area this week and that rain should last all day Wednesday.
Roughly golf ball-sized hail was also predicted for the area.
The Telegraph will update this story as updates become available. Telegraph reporter Gabriel Kopp contributed to this story.
This story was originally published June 14, 2023 at 10:28 AM.