Georgia 5-year-old boy killed by tree in deadly storm to be laid to rest

A 5-year-old boy from Butts County, Georgia who was killed during the severe storms that impacted North Georgia last week will be laid to rest Wednesday.

Egan Jeffcoat died when a tree fell on his family’s car Thursday on Haley Road. His mother, Tabatha Anglin, had picked him up early from school to get ahead of the storm, but the tree fell directly on their vehicle, according to a GoFundMe page set up by the family.

The mother was not hurt during the crash, but a third passenger was taken to a hospital with multiple broken bones, Channel 2 Action News reported.

“This has been devastating to the entire family,” the GoFundMe page states. “His mom was a single mom, and Egan was her entire world.”

The fundraiser said it hopes to pay for funeral expenses, a new car for Anglin and whatever it takes to help her get back on her feet.

Egan was a creative and outdoor-loving kindergartener at Stark Elementary and a member of Abundant Life Church, according to his obituary. He loved fishing, anything with wheels, and was a big fan of superheroes, especially Spider-Man. He was also an avid gamer who spent many hours playing the game Goat Simulator.

Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. in the Haisten Funeral Home Chapel in McDonough. Burial will take place afterward at Eastlawn Memorial Park, also in McDonough.

Egan was one of three people in Georgia killed during last week’s severe weather, when eight tornadoes were confirmed in the state by the National Weather Service. That number, which the NWS said is still fluid, brings the total number of twisters confirmed in Georgia this month to 13.

Sean Kornacki, who worked for the state Department of Transportation, was killed while responding to storm damage in Walker County, while Jesse Maxwell, a power lineman, was hit by a tree limb while working to clear debris in Jasper County, Channel 2 reported.

Kornacki, a Walker County highway maintenance foreman, had been with the organization for more than 16 years, according to a letter sent to employees by DOT Commissioner Russell McMurry. Kornacki, 40, of LaFayette, is survived by his daughter, girlfriend, mother, sister and two brothers, according to his obituary. His funeral was held Monday. He previously lived in New York.

Maxwell, 32, was in a bucket truck when he was hit in the back of the head.

“Baby, you are so, so loved and I need you more than you will ever know,” his wife, Hope Maxwell, wrote in a Facebook post. “You will forever be my hero and I will love you until my last breath.”

A celebration of life event for Maxwell will be held Thursday in Locust Grove, she said.

On Monday, President Joe Biden approved a federal disaster declaration in Georgia, freeing up funding for residents affected in Butts, Henry, Jasper, Meriwether, Newton, Spalding and Troup counties.

Among the eight tornadoes last week, the strongest was an EF3 in Griffin. It reached peak intensity of up to 150 mph and destroyed several homes along Kendall Drive.

“The resident of one of those homes rode out the storm in his bathtub, however the bathtub and all plumbing fixtures were torn away from the slab and tossed into the nearby woods,” the NWS said.

The long-track tornado traveled nearly 32 miles and injured at least 18 people, the NWS said. It lifted about a quarter-mile north of the Pike County- Spalding County line.

In Spalding County alone, roughly 2,100 homes were damaged and 100 were completely destroyed by the storms, the sheriff’s office said.

“Those numbers may also grow,” the sheriff’s office wrote on Facebook. “It looks like locally there is estimated to be in excess of 17 million dollars in damage across the city and county.”

Several EF2 tornadoes were confirmed, including one that was tracked from Alabama to Troup County, where it traveled through mostly wooded areas, the NWS said. Another was reported southeast of LaGrange along the Troup and Meriwether County line. It reached maximum winds of 120 mph, snapped or uprooted more than 1,000 trees and destroyed several homes.

An EF2 also touched down south of LaGrange’s Callaway Airport before damaging more than 30 homes across the Baldwin Park community. It damaged a warehouse building at a transportation facility and uprooted trees in Mountville. It had maximum winds of 120 mph and traveled a little more than 12 miles.

A brief EF1 tornado touched down in Cobb County, causing damage to an 18 Wheeler Truck Parts & Chrome building in Austell. EF1 tornadoes were also confirmed in Spalding, Warren and Butts counties.