Hurricane Michael Moves Through Georgia, Thousands Without Power

BIRMINGHAM, AL - Hurricane Michael made landfall at approximately 12:45 p.m. Wednesday near Mexico Beach on the Florida Panhandle, and moved through southeastern Alabama and Georgia Wednesday night. The path shows that Michael, now a tropical storm, headed into the Carolinas Thursday morning.

One of the hardest hit areas in North Carolina so far has been Onslow County, where 2,851 outages have been reported. A state of emergency has been declared in North and South Carolina, the News & Observer reported.

While the southern portion of Alabama will see heavy rain for the next several days, the Birmingham metro area is expected to see clear skies by Thursday and through the weekend. Temperatures will be cooler with highs in the 70s and lows in the 40s.

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Alabama Governor Kay Ivey declared a State of Emergency ahead of Michael's arrival Monday, as Alabama Power said its crews are on alert and ready to move quickly to restore power as soon as it is safe. The company is in communication with sister utilities in Georgia, Florida and Mississippi and with other investor-owned utilities in the region through its long-standing mutual-assistance agreements. The mutual-assistance system allows for utilities to quickly assist each other in restoration operations.

The Alabama Emergency Management Agency office said more than 75,000 Alabama residents were without power. As of Thursday morning, Alabama Power said there are still roughly 35,000 customers still without service.

Ivey also ordered the closure of state offices in Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Crenshaw, Coffee, Conecuh, Covington, Dale, Escambia, Geneva, Henry, Houston, Pike, Russell and any other counties that are placed under a Hurricane Warning by the NWS.

In the meantime, evacuees from Florida have sought shelter in central and northern Alabama, which caused traffic issues throughout the day Tuesday.

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