Nearly 40 homes suffered damage from severe thunderstorms and high winds Friday afternon, according to Gwinnett County police.
Much of the damage was concentrated in the southern part of the county, with four house fires reported in Snellville and 18 downed tree reports in Lilburn, according to the Gwinnett County Department of Fire and Emergency Services.
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A vacant home on Park Estates Drive in Snellville caught fire after being struck by lightning. The building sustained significant damage to its attic, roof and front facade. A home on Waterscape Trail in Snellville was also struck by lightning, but did not suffer significant damage. Smoke was reported at homes in Buford and Loganville.
A “downburst wind event” during the storms led to peak wind speeds of 85 to 90 miles per hour, the equivalent of an EF-1 tornado, according to the Gwinnett County Department of Emergency Management.
Two homes in the county were “destroyed” in the storms, according to the emergency management department, and 12 suffered “major damage.” The county uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s guidelines to classify severity of damage; “major damage” means the building has “sustained significant structural damage and requires extensive repairs.”
Eighteen homes suffered “minor damage,” meaning the damage does not affect its structural integrity. Three homes were inaccessible and three were “affected” by the storm.
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