JacksonHeraldTODAY

High winds, heavy rain, massive lightning and dime-size hail hit areas of Jackson County around 1 a.m. Thursday morning. The storm downed some large trees, knocked out power for several hours and caused two fires.

One of the hardest hit areas with wind damage appeared to be along Lyle Field Road between Jefferson and Commerce where a number of trees, some over 100-years-old, were blown over. Whether the damage was from straight line winds or a tornado wasn’t clear.

According to Steve Nichols, director of Jackson County Department of Emergency Services, 16 trees were reported down across county roads.

In addition, an old chicken house caught fire on B. Wilson Road in Commerce during the storm and a barn on Birch Street in Nicholson also caught fire. No injuries were reported.

Jackson EMC reported 15,000 customers out of power during the night, but only 64 remained without power as of 9 a.m. Georgia Power reported 215 customers without power early Thursday morning.