ATLANTA — Repair work was underway Sunday after a group of protesters damaged the Georgia Department of Public Safety headquarters along United Avenue in Atlanta early Sunday morning.

The DPS in a statement said “a group of protesters…estimated between 60-100 people, were dressed in dark clothing and many were wearing masks,” and approached the headquarters just after 1 a.m.

In a late Sunday morning news briefing, Lt. Stephanie L. Stallings said “they were armed with bricks, landscaping bricks, Molotov cocktails, fireworks. Their one mission was to destruct property and that is exactly what they did.”

A nearby resident, Kimberly Krautter, tells Channel 2 Action News she saw the group walking down the street and things escalate. “I heard the glass shatter, plate glass shatter, one of the offices. I saw one that seemed to be glowing from the inside, then I saw somebody carrying a flaming object and then threw it into a newly broken window and explode,” she told Channel 2.

DPS calls the damage extensive – thousands of dollars’ worth. Two employees were treated for smoke inhalation. Investigators say windows were shattered and nearby patrol vehicles as well. Parts of the building were spray-painted.

Lt. Stallings called the group “militant in their actions. They came to do nothing but destroy property and that’s exactly what they did.”

Governor Brian Kemp later Sunday tweeted “these criminals will be held accountable for their destructive and dangerous behavior.”