EMCs Report Outages in South and Southeast Georgia

TUCKER, Ga. – As of 5 a.m., Georgia’s electric membership cooperatives (EMCs) are reporting approximately 31,000 customers without power. Overnight, as the storm made landfall in Georgia, hurricane-force winds began toppling trees onto power lines and causing numerous power outages. At this time, the majority of outages are located in south and southeast Georgia.

Officials warn that outages will increase throughout the day and evening as strong winds and heavy rain contribute to worsening conditions.

EMCs serving these areas are working from their emergency storm plans and have extra line crews and equipment staged safely in nearby areas until the most dangerous weather moves through. At the same time, others have arranged for crews to come to Georgia from as far away as Iowa, Illinois and Oklahoma to expedite the restoration process.

EMC customers should contact their local EMC to report power outages. Members should follow updates from the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMHSA) at www.gema.ga.gov as well as announcements from the Office of Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal at http://gov.georgia.gov/press-releases.

Georgia EMC is the statewide trade association representing the state’s 41 EMCs, Oglethorpe Power Corp., Georgia Transmission Corp. and Georgia System Operations Corp. Collectively, Georgia’s customer-owned EMCs provide electricity and related services to 4.4 million people, half of Georgia’s population, across 73 percent of the state’s land area.

Note: Another update will be provided at 10 a.m. today. Meanwhile, for the latest outage information, go to https://georgiaemc.com/storm-center/current-outages.

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