Lee County hit hard by severe weather

At about 5:30 pm, severe thunderstorm moved into Lee County, causing damage from Valley and Cool Springs roads to Colon and Brickyard roads. Trees fell across roadways and onto power lines and homes.

Authorities condemned a house on Colon Road after a huge tree struck it.

“I said, ‘Well, mama, isn’t anything we can do about it. Everything happens for a reason,’” Greg Kelly said.

Ten structures and six vehicles were damaged during the storm. Progress Energy reported 729 power outages across the county at the height of the storm.

Trees were also reported down in Granville and Wayne counties. Gusty winds blew the roof off a barn in Halifax County.

Earlier Sunday, a band of showers intensified into strong thunderstorms over Alamance and Orange counties. It also brought heavy rains to parts of Raleigh and Durham, and then moved east and north into Franklin, Warren, Nash and Halifax counties.

Numerous lightning strikes and gusty winds over 30 mph accompanied the storm.

The cold front was headed out of the area, pushed by high pressure moving in from the west Tuesday. Warm and dry weather should continue into early next week, forecasters said.