Deadly storm leaves a path of damage through CSRA

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A deadly storm left a path of damage in the CSRA as it lashed its way through the region Saturday night.

Sheets of rain came down as thunder roared and winds gusted during the storm that started suddenly – although not unexpectedly, since News 12 meteorologists had issued a FIRST ALERT for possible severe weather.

Stretching across the region, the storm left one person dead in Banks County, Ga.

In the CSRA, much of the damage was in Aiken County, including trees that came down and blocked roads in the Rapids neighborhood off River Bluff Drive in North Augusta. In that same neighborhood, part of a shed blew into a road.

Also in North Augusta, power was out from Exit 1 of Interstate 20 all the way down Martintown Road to Georgia Avenue. At the exit, Waffle House employees were standing around outside waiting for power to come back on.

In total, about 4,000 Dominion Energy customers were without power at one point in Aiken County. For the current Dominion outage map, visit https://outagemap.dominionenergysc.com/.

In Augusta, electricity was out for about 2,000 Georgia Power customers at one point. For the current outage map, visit https://outagemap.georgiapower.com/.

Other problems included:

• A tree was down at Cherokee Drive and Jefferson Davis Highway in Clearwater. Also, one power pole and power lines were down.
• A tree came down on a house on Hammond Road.
• A transformer blew at Maple Street and Truman Avenue and set grass on fire in New Ellenton.
• A tree blocked tree Mount Calvary Road in Aiken County.
• The storm started a small brush fire near Midland Valley Estates on Jefferson Davis Highway. The source of the fire appeared to be a transformer.
• In Edgefield County, power poles and power lines were down in the 800 block of Highway 283. Neighbors came out to direct traffic.

Elsewhere in the region, the Georgia Department of Public Safety said one person was killed when a tree came down on his car in Banks County.

Jason Keith Payne, 56, was driving east on Georgia Highway 51 when a tree on the south side of the highway fell onto his car. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp expressed condolences.

“Join us in praying for the loved ones of a Georgian tragically lost tonight due to the severe storms,” he said Saturday night in a post on X. “As we keep them in our thoughts, we’re also praying for the first responders rushing to help those affected by this strong weather system and the safety of those in its path.”

There could be more severe weather ahead.

A FIRST ALERT remains in effect Sunday and Monday for the chance of severe storms.

The Storm Prediction Center has placed the CSRA, including Augusta and Aiken, in its category of slight risk (2 out of 5) for severe thunderstorms Sunday and Monday, with damaging winds and large hail being the main concerns.

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