In Mississippi, a man was drowned while trying to cross a swollen creek, while authorities called off the search for a missing swimmer presumed dead off Alabama. Another man was missing after trying to cross a creek in suburban Atlanta.

Tornadoes that caused minor damage were also reported Monday in Alabama, where rain was expected to taper off overnight. Southern cities that reported numerous roads closed by flooding included Birmingham, Alabama, and Chattanooga, Tennessee. More than 9 inches (23 centimeters) of rain had fallen in Chattanooga, setting a 24-hour record for rainfall.

“It’s been such a persistent rain that it has been causing some problems in low-lying and flood-prone areas, said National Weather Service forecaster David Gaffin, who expected remnants of Lee to linger in Tennessee through Tuesday.

Suspected twisters ripped off siding and shingles and sent trees crashing through roofs in Cherokee County, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) north of Atlanta. The Georgia Emergency Management Agency said about 100 homes were damaged there. One man was taken to the hospital with superficial injuries after he was hit by flying debris.

Mickey Swims and his wife hid in the basement of their house in Woodstock, Georgia, as an apparent tornado passed.

“I heard it and saw the trees go around and around,” Swims said. “I knew when I heard it that if it touched down, it was going to be bad.”

Swims owns the Dixie Speedway, where he estimated the storm caused $500,000 worth of damage. That includes about 2,000 feet (600 meters) of chain-link fence uprooted from its concrete base, walls blown out of a bathroom and concession stands and tractor-trailer trucks turned into mangled messes.

To the southeast in Norcross, a man was swept away when he tried to cross a swollen creek between apartment complexes, said Gwinnett County Fire Battalion Chief Dan Rowland. The search was called off at nightfall, and body recovery operations were going to start Tuesday morning. A companion to the missing man was caught in the creek but managed to make it out of the water.

In other parts of the state, six families were evacuated from a Catoosa County apartment building because of flooding, while slick roads caused an 18-car pileup in Monroe County, said agency spokeswoman Lisa Janak. No one was injured in those cases.

In areas of Louisiana and Mississippi that took the brunt of the storm over the weekend, thousands remained without power. Lee’s center came ashore Sunday in Louisiana, dumping up to a foot (30 centimeters) of rain in parts of New Orleans and other areas. Despite some street flooding, officials said New Orleans’ 24-pump flood control system was doing its job.

Heavy rain continued to fall in Mississippi on Monday, and a swollen creek near an apartment complex in Jackson prompted officials to move 45 families into a storm shelter. In Louisiana’s Livingston Parish, about 200 families were evacuated because of flooding.

Elsewhere, the heavy rain made for a dud of a Labor Day holiday as Gulf Coast beaches mostly cleared of tourists. On Monday morning, the main road on Alabama’s Dauphin Island was flooded and covered with sand, jellyfish and foam washed in by Lee.

In Gulf Shores to the west, surf churned up by the storm proved treacherous. The Coast Guard suspended its search for a swimmer who went missing Sunday. Local authorities were transitioning to efforts to find his body, said Maj. Anthony Lowery of the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office.

The storm was expected to move up the Tennessee River Valley on Tuesday, and forecasters have warned people to be on the lookout for tornadoes. Several already had been reported, including one that damaged five homes in Harrison County.

The rain had stopped out in the Gulf of Mexico, allowing oil and gas production platforms and rigs to look for damage and get operations kick started again on Monday. Federal regulators said evacuations had shut in about 61 percent of oil production and 46 percent of natural gas production in the Gulf.

Residents in Lee’s wake are worrying about the effects of soggy ground. Part of a levee holding back a lake in Mississippi’s Rankin County gave way, endangering some homes and a sod farm.

Out in the Atlantic Ocean, Hurricane Katia became a monstrous Category 4 storm. On Monday night, Katia’s maximum sustained winds increased to 135 mph (215 kph). Some strength fluctuations are expected before the storm slowly weakens.

Hurricane specialist Todd Kimberlain said it’s looking less likely that Katia will hit land but that wind from the storm could still affect the US East Coast as it moves north. Forecast maps show it veering to the northeast, away from the US in the coming week.

Katia was centered about 450 miles (725 kilometers) south of Bermuda and is moving northwest near 10 mph (17 kph).