The storm system that passed through Georgia overnight Monday into Tuesday is making its way out of the state.
At least one person was killed when a tree fell on a car in metro Atlanta’s Clayton County, WSB-TV reports.
Twelve tornadoes were reported across Florida, Alabama and Georgia on Tuesday morning, causing significant damage and prompting rescues in Florida’s panhandle, CNN reports.
In Northeast Georgia and across the state, school systems closed, and numerous weather-related hazards were reported.
Although the worst of the storm has passed, much of Georgia remains under a wind advisory and flood watch until 7 p.m.
Outages and flooding
Downed trees, flooded roads, and power outages caused the biggest problems in Northeast Georgia, as more than two inches of rain fell through mid-day Tuesday.
At 1:45 p.m., nearly 34,000 Georgia Power customers were without electricity across the state. Georgia’s electric cooperatives reported just over 48,000 outages statewide, mostly in the southern and central parts of the state.
Habersham EMC, which serves six Northeast Georgia counties, reported several dozen outages in Rabun and White counties Tuesday morning. By early afternoon, HEMC’s online outage map showed all of those outages had been restored.
While
he Chattahoochee River was close to overflowing its banks early Tuesday.
“We fared very well. We still have a few of our streets that are still closed or maybe impassable due to some flooding issues but those things should be cleared up pretty soon,” said White County Public Safety Director David Murphy.
In an update at 3 p. livestream, Strength reported: “Up until this point, we’ve fared fairly well. We did have a few issues across the county, but so far, we have not had any major issues across the county due to all the rain, and the wind hasn’t been that bad, as well.”
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Hazards
Habersham County Emergency 911 dispatched crews to a number of locations with downed trees and flooding, according to Communications Supervisor Kenny Williams. Many of the trouble areas were cleared or barricaded by County Shop and Georgia Department of Transportation crews.
Although the storm system has passed, roads in some areas remain hazardous. Officials continue to urge people to stay off the roads unless necessary.
“Stay in unless you must be out. If so, be careful traveling. There is standing water, and you won’t see it until it is too late,” warns Habersham County Emergency Management Agency Director Lynn Smith.
She adds, “Everyone needs to slow down. ”
In addition to school closings, some public services were rescheduled due to the weather. Demorest moved its trash pickup to Wednesday, Jan. 10.
Now Habersham continues to closely monitor the weather situation and will continue to bring you updates throughout the day.
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