Windy weather follows Tuesday’s storm

Published 12:25 pm Friday, January 13, 2012

Tuesday night’s rainstorm only caused minor damage, but gusting winds and a cold front have made thermometers in Bainbridge drop in the past few days.

At about 7 p.m. Tuesday night, gusting winds caused a traffic light at the intersection of U.S. 27 South and Douglas Drive to fall to the pavement. The other lights went into flashing mode, requiring a Georgia Department of Transportation employee to come reset them.

While a Bainbridge Public Safety officer was directing traffic at the intersection, a resident of Decatur Street, off S. West Street, reported a tree fell in their yard, striking a vehicle.

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BPS also responded to a tree down on Ashton Way and a tree that had fallen onto a power line along Vada Road, according to BPS Patrol Commander Capt. Jerry Carter. There were also some isolated power outages due to the weather, he said.

Decatur County Sheriff’s deputies and the county’s Public Works Department also responded to a number of downed trees on Tuesday night. One large tree that had fallen across Spring Creek Road was removed with the help of inmates from the Decatur County Prison.

Maximum wind speeds of 25.7 miles per hour were recorded Tuesday night, but Wednesday was actually windier, according to the weather gage at the University of Georgia’s Attapulgus Research Station. Maximum wind speeds of 29.2 miles per hour were recorded at the station on both Wednesday and Thursday, with an average wind speed of 6.5 miles per hour on Wednesday.

Approximately a quarter-inch of rain fell on Decatur County Tuesday night, according to the Attapulgus weather gage.

The forecast low for early Saturday morning was 26 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. The high temperature for Saturday is 58 degrees, with winds five to ten miles per hour.

The NWS has issued a red flag warning in Southwest Georgia for Saturday afternoon, which means that critical fire weather conditions will be present. Before burning outside, Bainbridge residents should call Public Safety at 248-2032. People living outside city limits should call the Georgia Forestry Office at 248-2616.

Sunday’s forecast is mostly sunny, with a high near 64 and winds around five miles per hour. The low Sunday night will be around 36 degrees.

On Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the weather will temporarily get warmer, with the high near 70 degrees. However, Wednesday’s high will be only be about 57 degrees.