TROUP COUNTY, Ga. — Days after an EF-3 tornado tore through Troup County, officials in the area have mostly reopened roadways but still face a big lift to resolve some closures - which could last for months, according to the sheriff's office.
The tornado tracked roughly 20 miles on Sunday, causing heavy damage, most prominently in the area of West Point, Georgia.
Sgt. Stewart Smith, the public information officer for the Troup County Sheriff's Office, said Thursday that two county roads in the area remain closed - including one that frequently gets used as a through-route to the nearby Kia Plant, and which has a bridge/overpass that will need to be replaced entirely.
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"We were just a couple of months removed from another tornado that hit in January. And so just when we thought we're getting our feet back on the ground, this one hit and it seems like this one was even more powerful," Sgt. Smith said.
The damage to Adams Road - and the bridge that spans a short section of the road - and Drummond Road could mean another couple of months until the area is fully back on its feet.
"Our local roads department, our roads engineering, it is a county maintained road and so it's going to be up to them to get that bridge replaced," he said. "And so that's going to be shut down for a long period of time."
He described the section of Drummond Road that's still closed as a dirt portion that's not really a major thoroughfare.
Sgt. Stewart noted it adds to the complications in the county, with another bridge closure on Hamilton Road about 13 miles to the northeast of Adams Road that was already in place for replacement work.
"It's just a lot of inconveniences going on right now," he said.