ALBANY, GA (WALB) - About 1:00PM Monday, Georgia Power said it is deploying 3,400 personnel to restore power as quickly and safely as possible following Irma. All of Georgia Power’s resources are being held and dedicated to storm restoration efforts in the state.
Georgia Power expects widespread, extensive damage due to high winds, heavy rain and fallen trees. Once the storm leaves, the company must wait until conditions are safe for damage assessment teams to enter the field and begin the restoration process, followed by repair crews, which could take several days, if not weeks.
As weather conditions improve, restoration efforts will accelerate, but it could take an extended period of time for all customers to be restored.
As of 1:00 p.m. Monday, there are more than 410,000 customers without power in Georgia and more than 3,600 individual cases of damage.
Georgia Power’s electric generating plants remain operational to serve customers, even during severe weather. Power plants, including coal, natural gas and nuclear plants, are built to be robust and highly secure and incorporate multiple layers of protection including structural strength, highly trained operators and security forces, and proven emergency plans.
Safety systems at U.S. nuclear plants, including Georgia’s Plants Vogtle and Hatch, are designed to withstand significant hazard events, including hurricane force winds and flooding.
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