Ga. Power: Snowstorms Cut Electricity to Over 40,000 (photos, video)

Snow falling on construction equipment in midtown Atlanta, at the uncompleted 14th St. bridge over the I-75/85 connector on Sunday, Mar. 1, 2009. (Photo: Dave Bender)

Metro Atlanta, and much of northeast, and southwest Georgia were blanketed with several inches of snow on Sunday that caused aggravation for many.

Georgia Power spokesman Jeff Wilson said the snowstorm cut electricity to tens of thousands of homes and businesses across a major arc of the state:

"We have about 42,000 customers statewide without power, about 30,000 of these are in the northeast part of the state - the Athens and the Winder areas. About 7,000 current outage in Metro Atlanta, and the rest scattered from Columbus to Rome."

Wilson says high winds and fallen trees are hampering repairs, and wasn’t able to estimate when power would be fully restored.

"Time lapse of March 1, 2009 Georgia snow. Video was taken from a security camera in Hiram, GA."
(Courtesy YouTube member: Zacwin)

The FAA says Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport had upwards of two-hour waits for some flights, and cancellations of others.

On the ground, the Georgia Department of Transportation says about a 1,000 people were working to clear roads.

Officials at the University of Georgia said Sunday they planned to delay classes on Monday until noon.

Six Flags amusement park, which had been scheduled for its spring opening on Saturday, remained closed all weekend, due to the snow and rainy weather.

Click here for the latest National Weather Service advisories.

Click here for more GPB News coverage and photos of the sudden stormy weather.

Forecast: Rain, Wind & Snow Expected

Click on the map for county-by-county forecasts. (National Weather Service)

The National Weather Service office in Peachtree City reports that large swaths of Tennessee and Alabama are getting hit with snow flurries, heavy rain and storm advisories, Sunday morning.

Rain and possible snow are expected to sweep through much of Georgia in the latter part of Sunday, Mar. 1, 2009. (Photo: Dave Bender)

Snow flurries were reported in Columbus and other parts of southwest Georgia by noon, although it did not stick to the ground.

From the National Weather Service:

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH AND CENTRAL GEORGIA.

DAY ONE: TODAY AND TONIGHT
WINTER WEATHER POSSIBLE ACROSS NORTH AND MUCH OF CENTRAL GEORGIA
TODAY.

SYNOPSIS:
LOW PRESSURE OVER CENTRAL GEORGIA THIS MORNING WILL MOVE OFF THE
GEORGIA COAST LATER TODAY. COLD ARCTIC AIR WILL BUILD INTO THE
STATE TODAY AS STRONG HIGH PRESSURE MOVES INTO THE MISSISSIPPI
VALLEY.

PRIMARY HAZARDS:
THE PRIMARY HAZARD TODAY WILL BE SNOW...POSSIBLY ACCUMULATING TO
ONE INCH OVER MUCH OF NORTH AND CENTRAL GEORGIA. WINDS WILL ALSO
BE STRONG AND GUSTY FROM THE NORTHWEST.

DISCUSSION:
COLD AIR WILL PUSH INTO NORTH AND CENTRAL GEORGIA TODAY AS HIGH
PRESSURE BUILDS OVER THE AREA. MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH A STRONG
UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL SPREAD OVER THE AREA. THIS COULD PRODUCE SNOW
ACCUMULATING TO UP TO ONE INCH OVER MUCH OF NORTH AND CENTRAL
GEORGIA TODAY INTO THIS EVENING.

A hazy, rainy skyline over midtown Atlanta, Sunday morning, Mar. 1, 2009. (Photo: Dave Bender)

This report will be updated throughout the day as fresh information come in.

Keys residents weigh evacuation, Gulf Coast next?

NOAA satellite photo of Hurricane Ike, Sunday afternoon. Click on the image for the latest National Weather Service reports.

With powerful Hurricane Ike still hundreds of miles away and on an uncertain course, residents on these low-lying islands weighed evacuation orders Sunday, perhaps a hint that Gulf Coast residents as far away as Texas and New Orleans may not heed similar calls to leave.

Sunday's forecast had Ike crossing Cuba and headed into the Gulf of Mexico later this week. The Florida Keys were in an uncertain position, and Gulf Coast states even more so. In Texas and Louisiana, where people were just returning from the mass evacuation for a weaker-than-expected Gustav, officials already acknowledged that it may be difficult to get people mobilized again.

In Key West, many residents have their own formula for determining whether to leave. Even though evacuation orders became mandatory Sunday, traffic out of Key West was busy but not jammed.

Mike Tilson, 24, was in wait-and-see mode Sunday, stocking up his Key West houseboat with supplies.

"I got tarps and champagne," he said as he pushed a wheelbarrow of supplies including Heineken beer, ice and a loaf of bread down the dock.

He said if the storm tracks north of Cuba, he'd evacuate. Otherwise, he won't leave even if Key West is expecting a Category 3 (winds of 111-130 mph). "It's just a good party. I'll stay."

At 2 p.m. EDT Sunday, Ike was a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 135 mph, moving west at 13 mph. Hurricane force winds stretched 60 miles from the center. It was forecast to track over Cuba, re-emerging over the island's western coast Tuesday morning about 100 miles south of Key West as a Category 1.

Though forecasts suggested the storm was headed into the Gulf, historically, most major storms passing by Ike's position had curved northward. If it gets into the Gulf, it could head anywhere from Texas to the Florida Panhandle, and it likely would strengthen again.

President Bush declared a state of emergency for Florida because of Ike on Sunday and ordered federal money to supplement state and local response efforts.

More than 60 residents and nearly 90 people from a homeless shelter had arrived at a shelter at Florida International University in Miami by afternoon, but many others said they wanted to see what the storm does over Cuba and possibly reassess on Monday.

Key West Mayor Morgan McPherson had a warning for people not wanting to evacuate the area. He said anyone who thinks staying through a major hurricane is "champagne time is someone who hasn't thought it through clearly." He said emergency vehicles would be pulled off the road if the area gets tropical storm force winds.

McPherson said 15,000 tourists had already evacuated the region, and the Key West airport was set to close at 7 p.m. Sunday. Passengers bound for Key West from the Miami International Airport were being asked to show identification proving they lived there and only residents were being allowed on Key Westbound flights.

Among those planning to stay in the United States' southernmost city were Claudia Pennington, 61, director of the Key West Art and Historical Society, who said she's staying to care for the group's three buildings and their contents. Don Guess, 50, was putting up plywood on a friend's house Sunday and said he was sticking around because the storm didn't worry him.

(The Associated Press)

Click here for more GPB News storm coverage.

Storm downs tree into Carter's Americus home

An oak tree struck the Plains home of former President Jimmy Carter as Tropical Storm Fay moved through southwest Georgia, according to a family member.

Jeff Carter, one of the former president's sons, says the tree struck the house Saturday night just above the living room. He says both his father and his mother, Rosalynn Carter, were at home at the time but neither was hurt.

The former president is scheduled to address the Democratic National Convention in Denver this evening.

Information from: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, http://www.ajc.com

(The Associated Press)

Storms thunder through Atlanta, briefly closing airport

Airport officials Saturday night briefly stopped arrivals and departures at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport due to thunderstorms that swept through the area.

The National Weather Service says that 50 m.p.h. wind gusts blew across the tarmac, causing about 100 Delta and AirTran flights to be diverted to nearby airports, according to a report in the Atlanta-Journal Constitution.

Georgia Power told the newspaper that about 143,000 customers lost electricity at about 10:45 p.m. Officials say they hope to restore power to the majority of customers by 5 a.m. Sunday morning.

Downed trees and power lines were reported mainly in Fulton, Cobb, DeKalb and Cherokee counties.

The southbound lane of I-85 near Tuskeegee Airmen Parkway was closed from downed trees, and some damage and debris was reported downtown.

Oxendine: $40 M in insured storm losses

Heavy thunderstorms and possible tornadoes on May 20, caused some $40 million in insured damages in Cherokee and north Fulton counties, according to Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner John Oxendine:

“After one week of documenting damage in the North Metro area, the insured losses there are at least $40 million,” Oxendine said. “Actual losses are much higher when you consider things like infrastructure damage and uninsured losses.”

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the recent severe weather statewide.

Georgia storm victims get break from IRS

Victims of the storms and tornadoes that rolled through Georgia two weeks ago are getting a break from the Internal Revenue Service. It's not a break from paying taxes, but people who live in seven counties declared disaster areas have an extended deadline to file. Those affected taxpayers now will have until May 19th to file returns or make tax payments. Those counties include Fulton, DeKalb, Jefferson, Burke, Bartow, Floyd, and Polk. Affected taxpayers must write ‘Georgia Severe Storms and Tornadoes’ on the top of their return.