Buckhead Areas Lose Power, Trees in Storm

The waves of thunderstorms Wednesday night knocked down trees, limbs and branches in Buckhead, causing power outages across the community.

Georgia Power spokesperson Carol Boatwright Thursday afternoon said that nearly 2,300 customers remained without power in Buckhead areas. This included 850 in Zip Code 30327, 616 in 30315, 172 in 30318, 460 in 30342 and 180 in 30324.

The Atlanta Police Department said no deaths or injuries were reported from the storms, the latest in a series that have brought damage in Buckhead this spring.

A huge tree was uprooted in the front yard of the historic Pink Palace mansion on West Paces Ferry Road. The Buckhead jewel, built in 1926, escaped damage. The pink stucco Italian Baroque home was on the market for $20 million a few years ago, although the price was later dropped to $10 million.

A short stretch of Habersham Road remained shut at noon Thursday by at least three huge trees that toppled across the road, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

In North Buckhead, a giant sweet gum tree  that fell from the front yard of a home blocked North Stratford Road. The tree's trunk snapped, and it crashed into the roadway, taking down a streetlight. No homes were hit, but power had been out since about 8 p.m. Wednesday, the owner of the home where the tree fell said early Thursday afternoon. She asked not to be identified.

She said four trees have fallen on her property in the last 18 months, one of them hitting her house.

Also in North Buckhead, a fallen tree fully blocked a section of Pinecrest Road between Beverly Lane and Haverhill Drive.

Areas around Blackland Road and off Northside Drive were littered with limbs and branches. Georgia Power crews were working in the area Thursday afternoon, along with tree companies. A familiar sound in Buckhead this spring — power saws — filled the air as sawdust flew.

The storms brought needed rain to the area, which had not seen significant precipitation since late May. Totals of as much as 1.5 inches to 2 inches were reported at some parts of metro Atlanta.