Update: Strong wind, storm advisory issued until 4:30 p.m. Tornado watch until 11 p.m.

Update: No one seeking help at Red Cross shelter, but workers there just in case

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Storm leaves behind damage in West Rome

The Fairbanks building was damaged by wind on Thursday. (Contributed photo, Ryan Smith)

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A power pole is snapped behind the IGA on Shorter Avenue. (Contributed photo, Ryan Smith)

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The storm that blew through Rome about 5 p.m. Dec. 22 affected a number of traffic signals around town. Drivers should use caution. (John Bailey / Rome News-Tribune)

slideshow Update:By 9 p.m. there was no one seeking shelter at Westminster Presbyterian Church on Shorter Avenue. There were some workers there preparing the Red Cross shelter just in case.

Previously posted:Carol Boatright, a spokeswoman with Georgia Power in Atlanta, estimated at 8 p.m. Thursday that 12,500 people in Floyd County, most of them in Rome, were without power.

She said crews are out working but she had no estimate of when power might be restored.

She said most of the damage from an afternoon storm occurred within the city limits.

Previously posted: Red Cross officials are opening are shelter at Westminster Presbyterian Church for all of those who have been affected by the storms, according to EMA Director Scotty Hancock.

Three people have been take to the hospital with minor injuries. The injuries occurred on Cherry Street and Watts Way in West Rome, and one of the injuries occurred when someone slipped on debris on Ash Street in the Riverside community.

Update: A Shorter University storage building that housed new furniture and computers was among the structures destroyed in a storm that hit Rome on Thursday, Dec. 22.

Dick Taylor, an assistant vice president with Shorter, said the damage to the building on John Davenport was serious. The roof was blown across the street.

Rome Fire Chief Gordon Henderson was sitting on Shorter Avenue when the storm hit.

He described winds of 50 to 75 miles per hour and sheets or rain falling.

Henderson was at Station One on Sixth Avenue, which just had power restored at about 7 p.m.

Firefighters are battling a blaze at a chicken house on Buttram Road just past the 200 block and have also had a house fire in the 500 block of Charleston Street.

Power outages and downed trees are being reported all around town, especially in the downtown and Shorter University areas.

The lights are out down much of Broad Street, at Martha Berry High way and the Rome Bypass, and in the Kingston Road area.

Georgia Power officials have said they are working to find the problem of the various power outages so that they may repair the problems.

Trees have also been reported down on Seventh Street near St. Mary's Catholic School and 911 dispatches have indicated at least six homes have been damaged on South Hughes Street in Rome. A strong storm rolled through Rome on Thursday, Dec. 22.

Widespread power outages, have been reported in East Rome, West Rome and South Rome. Georgia Power has estimated that at least 8,000 customers are without electricity.

The front of the Fairbanks Company has been blown off and there is heavy damage elsewhere on Division Street, according to an eyewitness.

A car was overturned in the area of Division Street and John Davenport and a structure fire was reported Charlton Street.

Debris has been reported on John Davenport near the railroad overpass.

There are trees down in other areas, too.

Power is out in much of West Rome and traffic lights are not working of Alabama Highway.

Trees have been reported down on homes on Cherry Street and Norcross Way and another tree has hit power lines on South Broad Street, according to 911 dispatches.

Georgia Power reported that about 8,400 people are without power, most of them in the Rome city limits.

Floyd County is under a significant weather advisory until 5:30 p.m. because of the possibility of strong winds and storms passing through the area.

Rome and Northwest Georgia have been included in a tornado watch that has covered a majority of Alabama for most of the day.

The tornado watch lasts until 11 p.m.

There have been tornadoes sighted near Birmingham and Montgomery today. Showers are likely this afternoon with the possibility of a thunderstorm and a high near 69 today, according to the National Weather Service.

As of 4 p.m. today .38 inches of rain were recorded at Richard B. Russell airport - .28 inches within the last hour.

Click here to view an interactive weather map on Weather.com.

Tonight's low is expected around 42 with a 40 percent chance of rain tonight.

Friday: Partly sunny, with a high near 59.

Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 33.

Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 57.

Saturday Night: A 50 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 40.

Christmas Day: A 40 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 56.

Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 30.

Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 54.

Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 29.

Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 55.

Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 29.

Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 58.

Source: http://rn-t.com/bookmark/16868497

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