National Weather Service reports EF-2 tornado hit Murray County Sunday night

Published 11:49 am Thursday, April 16, 2020

CHATSWORTH, Ga. — An EF-2 tornado with estimated peak winds of 135 mph tore a 7.8-mile long path nearly half a mile wide through northern Murray County on Sunday night, the National Weather Service reported Wednesday.

Also on Wednesday, the Murray County coroner released the rest of the names of the seven people who were killed by the tornado. They are:

• Myrtle Brookshire, age 75.

• Wilber Brookshire, 79.

• Wilber Brookshire Jr., 48.

The names previously released were:

• Rebecca Beck, 59.

• Richard Irwin, 50.

• Laquita Thomas, 63.

• Deanna Zambrano, 20.

According to a public information statement from the National Weather Service, at about 9:45 p.m. the tornado “touched down in west-central Murray County along Mitchell Bridge Road, just northwest of the Indian Trace Golf Course, where several smaller trees were snapped in this location. Additional damage was seen along a path that crossed Twin Lakes Road and Highway 286 where a few trees were snapped or uprooted and minor roof/siding damage occurred at several homes.

“The tornado appeared to briefly strengthen around Ellis Circle where there was more notable exterior damage to homes along with a higher number of trees seen uprooted. As the tornado crossed Fullers Chapel Road, noticeable strengthening occurred. Aerial drone footage indicated a wide swath of large trees cut down just before Norton Bridge Road. Then, at least eight double-wide manufactured homes were completely destroyed along Deer Park Drive, with several others sustaining some type of damage. It was here the tornado quickly jumped to EF-2 intensity with max winds around 125 mph.

“Continuing north-northeast, similar significant damage was seen along Ridgeview Lane and Fieldview Court, where additional (mainly double-wide) manufactured homes were destroyed. Also, a recently built cell tower was left crumpled by the intense winds. At this point, the tornado reached its peak intensity with max winds around 135 mph (high-end EF-2). The tornado maintained its EF-2 intensity as it crossed over Zion Church Hill Road, just before Highway 225.

“As the strong tornado crossed 225, a small single-family home was heavily damaged with just a couple of interior walls left standing. Along Jim Petty Road, there were four large chicken houses — one was completely destroyed with heavy damage to two of the other three. Debris was thrown several hundred yards away. Estimated winds continued in the 110-120 miles per hour range in this area.

“Heading north along Jim Petty Road near Hawkins Road, the damage appeared to lessen quickly with just a few trees down and minor structural (roof) damage to a shed. Very little if any damage was then seen beyond Baxter Road. The tornado is believed to have lifted just before Sumac Ridge.”

The tornado lasted about 10 minutes.

The Enhanced Fujita Scale measures the intensity of tornadoes and runs from EF-0 to EF-5, with EF-5 the most severe.

Murray County Emergency Management Agency Director and Fire Chief Dewayne Bain said all seven of those killed were in two “back to back” mobile home parks near Eton.

“They were within 1,000 feet of each other, basically one location,” he said. “One is the Ridgeview mobile home park, which was accessible off of Ridgeview Lane. I’m not sure the other had a name. But it was on Deer Park Drive, and was accessible off of Norton Bridge Road.”