UPDATE: Thousands without power as Fred hammers Southeast

Tropical Depression Fred slammed Georgia on Tuesday, with tornadoes and heavy rains reported throughout the state overnight and during the day.

As of 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Georgia was reporting about 7,800 homes without power, according to poweroutage.us. North Carolina had more than 31,000 customers without electricity, according to the site.

North Carolina reported several tornadoes and flooding Tuesday afternoon, according to The Associated Press.

A tornado was reported on the ground in northern Iredell County about 12:45 p.m. in North Carolina, according to Clay Chaney, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Chaney cited a local fire chief, the AP reported. The weather service also was checking reports of a tornado in Alexander County, according to the AP.

The western parts of North Carolina were preparing for more rainfall through early Wednesday, the AP reported. Transylvania County issued a state of emergency after 10 inches fell Monday, causing landslides, flooding roads and destroying at least one home, the AP reported.

About 12 vehicles were stranded in flooding on Smokey Park Highway after heavy rainfall in Candler, North Carolina.

A vehicle was partially submerged during flash flooding in Balsam Grove, North Carolina, according to reporter Reed Timmer.

Two of three westbound lanes of Interstate 40 in Haywood County, North Carolina, were closed Tuesday afternoon due to a rockslide that was triggered by the storm, according to the AP, which cited the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

The storm had passed metro Atlanta by late morning, leaving severe thunderstorms, brief tornadoes and flash flooding reported, according to meteorologists with Channel 2 Action News.

About 10:30 a.m., radar was reported to have spotted a tornado on the ground in Banks County in northeast Georgia.

Police in Americus, located in Georgia’s southwest corner, reported “significant storm damage” about 8 a.m.

The center of the storm was located in the Columbus area about 6 a.m., according to Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan.

About 6 a.m., a possible tornado was reported in Jeffersonville, a town near Warner Robins in central Georgia.

Also confirmed from Channel 2 Action News was a tornado in west central Georgia near LaGrange, just before 5 a.m.

Another possible tornado was reported around Macon.

President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency in Florida due to the storm.

» For a detailed forecast, visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution weather page.

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Rich Barak of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution contributed to this report.