JONES COUNTY, Ga. — Jones County 911 Communication Center initiated their tornado sirens Saturday afternoon after an officer claimed to see a possible tornado.
But, the Jones County EMA Director says there was not a tornado in the area.
EMA Director Don Graham says a Gray police officer was doing a routine traffic stop Saturday when he claimed to see a “black cloud with rotation” near the McDonald’s on West Clinton Street. The officer then called it into the Sheriff’s Office.
According to EMA Director Don Graham, the communication center turned on tornado sirens at 4:57 p.m. and they ran for around 10 minutes.
“It sort of freaked me out. I was watching the football game. I knew there were no watches or anything like that,” said Graham.
He says although there wasn't a watch or warning out, he called to the National Weather Service in Peachtree City to confirm there was nothing on the radar.
Graham says the Peachtree City office confirmed there was no rotation on radar.
Our meteorologists at 13WMAZ never saw any indication on radar of a tornado in Gray. Additionally, the National Weather Service never issued a Tornado Warning in Jones County.
Graham says the protocol for Jones County 911 Communication Center is to reconfirm the National Weather Service before initiating the siren, but it’s unclear if anyone in the office did.
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