More Than 100,000 Remain Without Power in Georgia

Credit: Greg Diamond

It's a nightmare in the South, as the harsh winter conditions continue to punish the residents of Georgia.

As of Wednesday morning, ice-related power outages had cut off more than 100,000 customers across Georgia, an estimate that continues to rise as the winter storm continues to plague the region.

Early reports noted only a few scattered power outages early today, but as ice formed, those outages grew to nearly 27,000 by 8 a.m., with more than 14,000 of those outages occurring in metro Atlanta, according to Georgia Power. After 9.a.m., the number was up to 59,000; by 10 a.m., 77,000; ten minutes later, the number had climbed to 85,000. By 10:35 a.m., over 97,000 were out of power. And those reports were just from Georgia Power alone.

Other power companies were hit with a deluge of outages: Greystone Power reported 10,700 outages, while Walton EMC claimed approximately 1,700 customers without power. The largest groups affected included Riversdale (5,000 customers) and Union City (4,300 customers).

This is, of course, disastrous for residents, as temperatures continue to hover just below freezing. Schools and colleges in the area, including the University of Georgia, had already shut down for the day after Governor Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency for Clarke County and Oconee County earlier this week. Everything is being done to fix the problem, but there's no immediate end in sight for the calamity, as ice continues to accumulate. Our thoughts are with the people of Georgia during this trying time. Hopefully, no one loses their life over this.

Via: AJC