One death has been confirmed in Bartow County by Bartow County Coroner Joel Guyton. He said there are no details at this time.
Polk County escaped the brunt of the storm, though heavy rain and high winds pelted the area during the late morning and early afternoon hours.
Emergency crews have closed Ga. 140 from Ga. 53 to the Bartow County line, according to Sgt. Gary Conway of the Floyd County Police Department.
The National Weather Service has dropped the tornado watch for Polk and Floyd County as the heavy portions of the system pass to the south. We are still under a wind advisory.
Injuries have been reported at the Daiki plant in Adairsville. Workers at the Northside Bank took shelter in a vault.
Adairsville Mayor Evan King is asking people to stay off the roads so emergency vehicles can get through to where they are needed. The main branch of the Northside Bank of Adairsville had portions of its roof blown off and parts of the Daiki plant was destroyed.
Bartow County Fire Chief Craig Millsap said the body was found in the storm damage but did not have further details on how the person died. The same system also was blamed for a death in Tennessee. Most dangerous were powerful wind gusts that in several places were powerful enough to overturn tractor-trailers.
There were reports that people were trapped in homes and businesses, and television footage showed large sections of a sprawling manufacturing plant had been destroyed.
Footage also showed a funnel cloud roaring through the downtown area of Adairsville, about 60 miles northwest of Atlanta, flipping cars and demolishing a home. Interstate 75 was closed in both directions after the storm flipped cars onto their roofs and tossed them onto the grassy shoulder.
At least two tornadoes were confirmed and several more suspected, and conditions remained ripe for more. Since Tuesday, the system had caused damage across a swath from Missouri to Georgia.
In recent days, people in the South and Midwest had enjoyed unseasonably balmy temperatures in the 60s and 70s. A system pulling warm weather from the Gulf of Mexico was colliding with a cold front moving in from the west, creating volatility.
Police said high winds toppled a tree onto a shed in Nashville, Tenn., where a man had taken shelter, killing him.
Across the region, downed power lines, trees and tree limbs were making it difficult to reach people who needed help.
Another person was reported injured by lightning in Arkansas during the storm's eastward trek. Two people suffered minor injuries when a mobile home was blown off its foundation in Kentucky.
Read more: CatWalkChatt - 1 death reported in Adairsville after tornado damages several businesses
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