Many without power after Zeta blows through Heard County

A large tree fell across Newnan Street overnight landing on a powerline. A portion of Newnan street marked by orange cones is currently closed

(Franklin, GA) — High winds and heavy rains brought down some trees and power lines in the Heard County area early Thursday morning, but there have been no reports as of this morning of any major structural damage or injuries.

Tropical Strom Zeta arrived after midnight with the most intense weather activity occurring between 2:00-6:00 AM.

Heavy rains moved through quickly, but the high winds lasted for several hours with gusts reaching as high as an estimated 50-60 MPH in some areas of the northern and western portions of the county.

Heard County Fire Chief Steve Wirth advised motorists to stay off the highways if possible prior to the daylight areas as crews worked to clear tree and limb damage in many areas.

HWY 34 west of Franklin was closed for a short time due to trees falling across the highway near the intersection of Jeff Davis Road.

A portion of Newnan Street in the City of Franklin remains closed at this time due to a large tree across the street and on a power line.

Due to a power outage at the Heard County Water Authority Treatment Plant, local HCWA customers are being asked to limit the use of water until power can be restored.

As of 9:20 AM this morning, Carroll EMC currently estimates that about 73% of its Heard County customers are without power.

Georgia Power reports that 607 out of 1,105 Heard customers are affected.

Georgia Power is also reporting only a few customers without power in Heard County, but are reporting over 600,000 customers are without power statewide.

All Heard County schools are closed today and extracurricular activities were cancelled as well. The Region 5-AA Cross Country Meet scheduled for this morning at HCPR will be made up Friday at 10:30 AM.

Stay tuned to HeardCitizen.com for further information and updates as they become available.