A confirmed tornado with 110 mph winds damaged seven homes in Catoosa County late Monday, but no injuries were reported.
The EF1 twister hit just north of Ringgold, but its exact path had not been determined, The National Weather Service said Tuesday.
The Callaway Farms neighborhood took the brunt of the damage, Steve Quinn, battalion chief with the Catoosa fire department, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Firefighters were called to the area shortly before 8 p.m., he said.
“We responded to reports of possible straight-line wind damage,” Quinn said.
Firefighters went door to door in the neighborhood, making sure everyone was safe and accounted for, Quinn said. Then crews began assessing the damage.
“There were two homes that received the worst damage,” Quinn said.
Gas and electricity were shut off to the homes with the worst damage, but power remained on for other homes. Five additional homes were also damaged.
Crews were checking other areas Tuesday for damage, but investigators believe the rest of the county was mostly spared, Quinn said.
In April 2011, an EF4 tornado touched down in Catoosa County killing eight people, including a family of four. Most of those killed were in homes along Cherokee Valley Road, south of Ringgold. Dozens of homes were damaged, along with several businesses and schools.
Ringgold is about 100 miles north of Atlanta along I-75.
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