More Than 300,000 Georgians Without Power

At a noon briefing, Gov. Nathan Deal stressed “we’re not totally through this yet.”

He said Georgia Power and other utility companies, along with state and local officials, are moving to restore power as quickly as possible.

“The most significant effects we’re now seeing is what we predicted yesterday and that is ice moving out the I-20 corridor moving toward Augusta and Augusta appears to be the most heavily impacted with regards to loss of power,” said Deal.

Over the last several days, Georgians have reported more than 500,000 outages. Deal said roughly 75 percent of Georgia Power’s outages have come from Augusta.

Deal extended the state of emergency for the 91 affected counties to Sunday night. He warned temperatures are again expected to fall below freezing tonight, translating into a continued threat of ice and black ice.

“It’s nice to see the sun. It’s nice to think you’ll be able to get out but do be careful. Don’t unnecessarily jeopardize yourself because tomorrow morning those roads are going to be slick,” said Deal.

He said 200 “strike teams” equipped with chainsaws are heading to the Augusta area to help clear debris and help utility companies restore power.

Deal again thanked Georgians for heeding warnings to stay off roadways. He said one of the major lessons learned through this storm is when people are given information, they respond accordingly.

“The fact that we were able to keep many people from being involved in the mix, I think, has made it not nearly as dramatic and traumatic as it might otherwise have been,” said Deal.

After the briefing, Deal and other emergency responders flew by helicopter to the Augusta area to survey damage and coordinate further action.

As for school tomorrow, most districts in metro Atlanta have either canceled class or plan to follow through with already scheduled off-days.