This story was last updated March 1 at 8:45 p.m. with more information. For closings check the bottom of the story.

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?? Take Cover! Severe Thunderstorm Warning including Chattanooga TN and East Ridge TN until 3:00 PM CST pic.twitter.com/H1xbZxeBMl — NWS Morristown (@NWSMorristown) March 1, 2017

Firefighters work the site of a damaged area in Ottawa, Ill., after a tornado moved through the area Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has activated the state's emergency operations center as local officials reported damage from tornados spawned by a late-winter storm system. (Allen Cunningham/Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

Some facts about hail from the National Weather Service A powerful storm system blew through a large swath of the nation's midsection, spawning deadly tornadoes, blowing cars off roads and causing property damage, including from hail. Here are some hail facts, according to the National Weather Service:



HOW IT FORMS



Inside thunderstorms are warm updrafts and cold downdrafts. When a water drop is lifted, it can carry to temperatures below 32 degrees, freeze and then fall. As it falls it can thaw as it moves into warmer air, where it can get picked up again by another updraft, returning it to cold air where it refreezes. With each trip above and below freezing, it adds a layer of ice before it ultimately falls to earth as hail.



HAIL SIZES (diameter)



Pea: inch



Marble: inch



Penny: inch



Nickel: 7/8 inch



Quarter: 1 inch (hail at least quarter size is considered severe)



Pingpong ball: 1 inch



Golf ball: 1 inch



Tennis ball: 2 inches



Baseball: 2 inches



Grapefruit: 4 inches



Softball: 4 inches



BIGGEST EVER



The largest recorded hailstone in the U.S. was nearly as big as a volleyball and fell on July 23, 2010, in Vivian, South Dakota. It was 8 inches in diameter and weighed almost 2 pounds.



DAMAGE DONE



Hail causes about $1 billion damage to crops and property annually. A hailstorm that hit Kansas City on April 10, 2001, was the costliest ever in the U.S., causing about $2 billion damage.

Update: EPB posted the following message to its website at 8:42 p.m.:

"Damage from the storm that swept through the Chattanooga area this afternoon continues to impact about 1% of EPB customers, who are without power. EPB crews will continue working into the night until all customers are restored. the Smart Grid prevented outages that would have impacted about 9,700 customers. For more information or to report an outage please use this link: Outage Map & Report Outage Page or call 423-648-1EPB (1372)."

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Emergency responders reported downed power lines across Chattanooga, and an EPB outage map showed a power outages across the utility's Smart Grid.

"There are multiple calls coming in on trees and lines down," said EPB spokesman John Pless in the moments after the storm passed. "Too many to list at the moment."

Significant outages were reported primarily in the northern part of Chattanooga, stretching from the north shore to Soddy-Daisy.

Hamilton and Bradley County schools will open tomorrow on a normal schedule.

About 5,500 customers lost power during the storm, and about 3,000 were still without power as of 5:30 p.m., according to Pless. The utility's Smart Grid prevented about 9,700 customers from experiencing an outage, Pless said.

Officials also confirmed that a tree fell on an occupied building on Westwood Ave. No one was injured. Trees and large branches fell into several properties across the city.

Traffic lights fell down at several intersections, including the corner of Market Street and 3rd Street, and at the corner of Daisy Dallas Road and Hixson Pike.

A tree fell at Campbell Street and Glass Street, partially blocking the roadway. The Chattanooga police reported roadway flooding in Brainerd at the East Gate Loop.

The Morristown, Tenn. National Weather Service reported that severe storms produced golfball- and tennis ball- sized hail in Marion County. In Northwest Georgia, witnesses reported marble-sized hail fell in some areas.

The National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for the Chattanooga area until 6 p.m. today.

A tornado watch means that conditions are favorable for tornadoes and severe thunderstorms that may contain damaging hail and destructive winds.

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ORIGINAL STORY:

The Chattanooga area and surrounding states could see severe, damaging winds and storms Wednesday.

The National Weather Service today said a weather system moving eastward across the Deep South could spawn severe thunderstorms with high winds and isolated, brief tornadoes.

"It's going to be a nasty spring event, even though it's wintertime still," said WRCB Chief Meteorologist Paul Barys.

Area school systems began announcing late Tuesday afternoon they would close in anticipation of the storm. As of late Tuesday evening, Bradley, Hamilton, Grundy, Marion, Meigs, McMinn, Polk, Rhea and several other Tennessee counties had announced closures of all their schools. Catoosa, Dade and Walker counties in Georgia also announced school closings. Union Hill M. B. Church and Metropolitan Ministries also will be closed Wednesday.

In Chattanooga, high winds with gusts of up to 50 mph may down trees or tree limbs, as well as power lines. Loose outdoor objects should be secured, and motorists should be cautious of crosswinds, according to the federal weather agency.

"Most of those elevated winds will be on the higher elevations. But you could have 30-35 mph winds in some of the valley areas [Wednesday]," Barys said.

The winds stem from a strong low-level "jet" that will move into the eastern Tennessee Valley tonight ahead of a cold front that will sweep into the region later in the afternoon, according to the National Weather Service's Morristown, Tenn., office.

There is also an enhanced risk of thunderstorms that will produce straight-line winds that may produce large hail and potentially a few tornadoes.

"There's an outside chance for a tornado. I think the more tornadoes that occur are going to be north of here, but it's not impossible," Barys said. "Everyone's going to have to stay on their toes and get ready to move quick if warnings are issued. It could start anywhere in the afternoon."

The timeframe for the most severe weather Wednesday is between noon and 8 p.m.

"It's a very powerful storm," Barys said. "They're just starting to put out tornado watches well to the north and west of us, and it's going to be nasty up there."

The National Weather Service expects to activate its spotter network as the severe weather moves in.

The areas at greatest risk include northeastern Mississippi, northern Alabama, and the northwestern corner of Georgia.

Forecasters said there's an enhanced risk of severe weather from eastern Tennessee all the way north to West Virginia.

CLOSINGS IN THE AREA:

The Veterans Affairs medical clinic in Athens, Tenn., has closed for the day because of the threatening weather. All other VA outpatient and in-patient centers in the region are operating normally.

Chattanooga's refuse collection centers and recycle convenience centers closed at 11 a.m. today. They are scheduled to reopen tomorrow.

Georgia Northwestern Technical College will close all campuses at 2 p.m. today due to the threat of severe weather. All evening classes and activities have been canceled.