After a day of heavy rain and thunderstorms, several roads in Habersham County remain closed tonight due to flooding. And public safety officials warn the situation could get worse as runoff continues overnight.
The storm system moving through Northeast Georgia has dumped up to three inches of rain on the area since Wednesday evening.
School delays
Some area schools released students early on Thursday due to flooding and road closings. Habersham County Schools remained open but are on a 2-hour-delay on Friday, Feb. 7 in anticipation conditions might worsen.
“Our concerns are that trees will fall as winds pick up tonight and that larger rivers and streams will crest overnight. We could also have power outages at schools,” says county school superintendent Matthew Cooper. “We do not want students, staff or buses driving in the dark.”
Tallulah Falls School will also operate on a 2-hour delay Friday, along with school systems in Dawson, Lumpkin, Rabun, Towns, Union, and White counties.
Flood rescue
The Chattahoochee and Soque Rivers are both now above flood stage. Streams and creeks, such as Little Hazel Creek (pictured above) have also overflowed their banks and are flooding low-lying areas across Habersham.
Two drivers – one an Amazon deliveryman – were rescued from flooded vehicles on the north and south end of Habersham County. First responders rescued them using life jackets and safety ropes.
The Amazon driver injured his shoulder during his rescue and was taken by ambulance to Habersham Medical Center in Demorest for treatment.
Officials say the van was loaded with packages. They were ruined in the flood.
Roads closed in Habersham
Several county roads remain closed this evening due to flooding. They include Gilstrap Road in Alto; Beaver Lake Road south of Turnerville; Wilson Road at Lakeside Circle, Creasy Patch Road, and Charlie Davis Road off of Duncan Bridge Road in Cornelia.
A mudslide this morning temporarily shut down one lane of Buckhorn Road north of Clarkesville.
Habersham County Road Department crews spent the day clearing hazards from roads.
Several wrecks were reported in the county but there have been no reports of serious injuries.
Public safety officials continue to urge drivers to stay off the roads if possible.
“We ask the public not to go across roads that have water running across the road. We also ask them to slow down and use caution when driving,” says Lt. Matthew Wurtz.
Roads closed in White County
Similar scenes unfolded today in White County where the rain significantly impacted the north end of Cleveland.
“Several roads are closed due to flooding and damage,” he says. Other roads are damaged but passable “with caution,” Murphy says.
Floodwaters caused a sinkhole and wash out in the 1800 block of US Hwy. 129 South in Cleveland.
Lightning sparked three residential fires in White County Thursday morning. Murphy says two of the structures sustained only minor damage.
Updated 2/6/20@9:20pm
