Late-night storms bring trees down on homes

Storms that swept through metro Atlanta on Wednesday night brought down trees and power lines and spawned at least one severe thunderstorm south of the city.

In southwest Atlanta, a family of five was taken to a hospital after a tree crashed through their home on Grand Avenue.

Alicia Verdugo said her sister, brother-in-law and their three older children were making dinner when a strong storm moved through the Cleveland Avenue area about 11 p.m. Thirty minutes later, Verdugo said she got a phone call asking her to come to her sister’s house, and fast.

A large tree limb had fallen across the front of the single-story home, splitting it in two. Verdugo’s sister and her family were able to walk away on their own, but not without injury.

“My nephew, he has a pain in his back,” Verdugo told The Atlanta Journal-constitution from outside the crushed home Thursday morning. “My sister, her neck was really ... in pain. My brother was a miracle. The tree fall on his neck.”

Strong thunderstorms moved across the Alabama border and into south Atlanta on Wednesday night, contributing to about a half-inch of rain by the end of the day. Around 11:30 p.m., a thunderstorm capable of producing severe weather was spotted on radar moving south of the city toward Fayette County.

Clayton, Coweta and Spalding counties were also included in the warned area. The National Weather Service has not reported any tornado or significant wind damage Thursday.

In the Gresham Park area of Dekalb County, Mesa Drive resident Leisa Stafford said she was climbing into bed early Thursday when she heard a loud boom around 1:40 a.m. She initially thought it was an intruder, until she looked out of her bedroom door and saw attic insulation had fallen into the living room.

A fallen tree blocked access to the front door and a secondary escape out of Stafford’s bedroom window, she said. She decided to climb out of her bathroom window, and by that point fire crews had arrived with a ladder to help her safely to the ground.

She was not allowed to reenter her home Thursday as the tree had compromised its foundation.

“I’m grateful, and I’m grateful that I have insurance,” Stafford said. “I’m grateful that I’m OK. Everything can be replaced.”

Gratitude was at the forefront of Verdugo’s mind as she surveyed the damage to her sister’s home Thursday. All five of her relatives were waiting to be seen at a hospital and were expected to be checked for internal injuries.

Looking at the heap of tree debris and splintered siding, Verdugo became emotional thinking how close she came to losing her family.

“I don’t have words,” she said.

PHOTOS BY JOHN SPINK/JOHN.SPINK@AJC.COM Alicia Verdugo stands outside her sister’s crushed Grand Avenue home Thursday morning in southwest Atlanta, surveying the damage after a tree fell Wednesday night during strong storms.

The inhabitants of the Grand Avenue house were taken to a hospital to be checked for injuries. No tornado was reported Thursday.