Commerce was cleaning up Wednesday morning following the touchdown of a tornado Tuesday afternoon.
[See photo of tornado as it approached Commerce by clicking here]
A tornado spawned by the remnants of Tropical Storm Fay destroyed one mobile home and damaged a number of residences at about 4:30 Tuesday afternoon in the Cedar Drive area of Commerce.
Two people were slightly hurt by the twister, which approached from the southwest over Washington Street, then dipped to the ground for mere seconds before receding back into the clouds.
Damage caused by Tuesday's twister in Commerce.
Commerce cleaning up after tornado
A mobile home on Cedar Drive 
owned by Renae Bonds was hardest hit. The wind snatched it off its foundation, blew it nearly 100 feet and smashed it to the ground near a Georgia Power right of way. Fortunately, Bonds was not home at the time. A tall utility pole was blown over the major Georgia Power transmission line through the area, and electric service was out.
The smell of natural gas was evident around the Bonds' house. Water from a severed service line poured onto the ground.
"We saw it coming from Hill Street," said Nathan Anderson. "We saw it form and go down."
The tornado also damaged the front deck and roof of the residence of Willie Pearl Daniel, 218 Ridgeway Street.
"The bad thing is I don't have any homeowners' insurance," she said. "I couldn't afford it no more."
Her son, Lamar Daniels, saw it coming; the family took refuge in an inner room.
"We saw it from the bank," said Sandra Haggard of Regions Bank. "We saw it back over Washington Street. The clouds came down and it started swirling and we said 'there's a tornado on the ground.'"
Haggard said "green lightning" accompanied the twister for about five seconds as it was on the ground.
"I said, 'Oh God, that's the recreation department,'" she recalled, to which Doug Norwood, who was at the bank replied, "No, it's going to hit my momma's house." Mrs. Daniel is his mother.
Several other residences in the immediate area suffered lesser damage. A tree fell on a mobile home, whose elderly occupant was shaken up but not injured. Downed tree limbs or other damage were reported on Cole Court and Ashworth Mobile Home Park.
Officials closed Old U.S. 441 (Homer Road) at 5:10 to keep onlookers out.
Commerce police, fire and rescue workers were quickly on the scene. Jackson County EMS rolled in, and the county road department was summoned. The American Red Cross was en route to the area and a number of nearby police and fire departments also responded to help with traffic control, tree cutting and searching for injured people. The First Baptist Church made its facilities available for those displaced by the storm.
BJC Medical Center was not damaged in the storm, although it was very close to where the tornado touched down. The hospital did lose power and was operating off backpower for some time.
The tornado was first spotted near Arcade and was followed by deputies from the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. At about 4:15 p.m., it touched down at a home off Brockton Loop Road damaging the roof and a garage door. It then went back into the air and headed Northeast touching down in Commerce a few minutes later.
(see map of area affected here)
The smell of natural gas was evident around the Bonds' house. Water from a severed service line poured onto the ground.
"We saw it coming from Hill Street," said Nathan Anderson. "We saw it form and go down."
The tornado also damaged the front deck and roof of the residence of Willie Pearl Daniel, 218 Ridgeway Street.
"The bad thing is I don't have any homeowners' insurance," she said. "I couldn't afford it no more."
Her son, Lamar Daniels, saw it coming; the family took refuge in an inner room.
"We saw it from the bank," said Sandra Haggard of Regions Bank. "We saw it back over Washington Street. The clouds came down and it started swirling and we said 'there's a tornado on the ground.'"
Haggard said "green lightning" accompanied the twister for about five seconds as it was on the ground.
"I said, 'Oh God, that's the recreation department,'" she recalled, to which Doug Norwood, who was at the bank replied, "No, it's going to hit my momma's house." Mrs. Daniel is his mother.
Several other residences in the immediate area suffered lesser damage. A tree fell on a mobile home, whose elderly occupant was shaken up but not injured. Downed tree limbs or other damage were reported on Cole Court and Ashworth Mobile Home Park.
Officials closed Old U.S. 441 (Homer Road) at 5:10 to keep onlookers out.
Commerce police, fire and rescue workers were quickly on the scene. Jackson County EMS rolled in, and the county road department was summoned. The American Red Cross was en route to the area and a number of nearby police and fire departments also responded to help with traffic control, tree cutting and searching for injured people. The First Baptist Church made its facilities available for those displaced by the storm.
BJC Medical Center was not damaged in the storm, although it was very close to where the tornado touched down. The hospital did lose power and was operating off backpower for some time.
The tornado was first spotted near Arcade and was followed by deputies from the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. At about 4:15 p.m., it touched down at a home off Brockton Loop Road damaging the roof and a garage door. It then went back into the air and headed Northeast touching down in Commerce a few minutes later.
goes out to Renee. God Bless girl and keep the Faith!!
Also to the power company or companies that restored our power so quickly.
The City of Commerce, along with other surrounding communities that helped rescue and restore should be very proud!
Wonderful community togetherness!
understand that they were trying to keep curious people out of the way, but they would not let me through even though I lived down there. They told me I would have to park somewhere and walk home..Are you kidding me? I ended up parking at the movie gallery and walking. As I was walking I saw cars coming and
going from the side streets and the cops even let a few cars come through the road blocks b/c they lived on the road. About halfway to my house it started pouring rain and thundering and lightning. Cops were passing me left and right..but did anyone offer to stop and give me a ride? NO!! What kind of police enforcement would let a woman walk down the road, alone, in the dark and pouring down rain and not offer
her a ride...obviously the commerce police.
Ambulances,Red Cross, Ham radio operators, and all those that 911 sent to help, thanks to you also. And, May God Bless each of You.