Radium Springs memorial unveiled

(RADIUM SPRINGS, GA) – Nearly 4 years after tornadoes tore through Radium Springs, Dougherty County unveiled a memorial to the five people who lost their lives in the storm.

Dougherty County Administrator, Michael McCoy told those in attendance, “We had to do something that would hold meaning, and would impact others. So that the legacy of the lives of the citizens could live on forever.”

After more than a year and a half, the radium springs memorial is complete, serving as a reminder for not just the devastation from the tornado, but previous storms like the Flood of 1994.

“When you see something like this, it isn’t easy to get it out of your mind. It’s going to be there for a while,” says Coroner, Michael Fowler.

To the families who lost their loved ones in the tornadoes, seeing this pillar honors not just their memories, but the impact they had on Radium Springs.

For Leon Gahlman, he lost his wife of 51 years, Patricia in the tornadoes.

Gahlman tells us, “Well i’m glad that she’s being remembered. I’m glad that the other four are being remembered also. I’m glad that they’re restoring this beautiful area. At one time, it used to be this gem of Albany, everyone came to Radium Springs.”

While for Linda Freeman, she lost her father, Paul, who was a big part of the community she grew up in.

To her, the memorial not only honors the memory of her father, but her home.

She says, “This was his dream home, and he loved this community. He would’ve been absolutely heartbroken to see the devastation…It’s one thing to lose my father, it was another thing to lose my childhood home. But what hurt me the most was to see the loss of the community.”