The Georgia World Congress Center will not be open to the public on Monday and has pulled the plug on two upcoming meetings at the downtown convention facility.

The GWCC will remain closed to everyone but staff as it continues to recover from the weekend's devastating storms, including an apparent direct hit by Friday night's tornado, said Katy Pando, a spokeswoman for the building.

Hyosub Shin/AJC (ENLARGE)

The Georgia World Congress Center sustained significant damage from the tornado that swept through Atlanta Friday night.

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Officials with the facility were assessing the damage Sunday and should have a better idea of the overall effect of the storms on Monday, she said.

The storms damaged several sections of the massive building's roof, rain water washed down walls and burst pipes soaked carpets.

Gov. Sonny Perdue planned to tour the state-owned building Sunday afternoon.

Because of the problems, a job fair scheduled Monday for the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been postponed, Pando said. The Atlanta Fund Raising Summit, which was scheduled for the convention on Tuesday, has been canceled, she said.

Attendance was expected to be about 1,000 people for the CDC meeting and 125 for the fund raising summit.

Pando did not know the status of the Big South Qualifier, which is set to begin at the GWCC on Wednesday and have an economic impact of $18 million. About 38,000 volleyball players are expected for the event, which runs through March 23.

The International Window Coverings Expo follows March 27-31. Attendance is expected to be about 8,000 people with an economic impact of $8.5 million.

The damage assessment also will help the GWCC determine when exhibitors can retrieve their belongings from three meetings that were underway when the storm hit, Pando said. Exhibits for the Atlanta Home Show, Hinman Dental and Southeastern Conference Fanfare are still in the building, the fourth largest convention center in the country.