Hurricane Irma: Full List Of Georgia Evacuation Shelters, Where To Take Pets

ATLANTA, GA — Southeast Georgia residents heeded orders to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Irma, which filled some Macon area evacuation shelters along with many Atlanta area hotels by Saturday. With Atlanta now under a tropical storm warning, more shelters are opening in the metro, along with those operating in the Waycross, Augusta and Columbus areas (see full list below). Gov. Nathan Deal has placed all of the state's 159 counties under a state of emergency as authorities brace for heavy rains, wind damage, and power outages when the storm powers through the Peach State.

A growing number of Red Cross shelters are open in central and northeast Georgia for residents who need a place to stay. And shelters are also opening to take in pets, while churches in some communities opened Saturday to bolster support for uprooted Georgians fleeing the category 4 storm that has killed at least 20 people in the Caribbean.

The Cherokee Outdoor YMCA, 201 E. Bells Ferry Road in Woodstock, will open as a shelter for any evacuees who need housing, authorities said Sunday afternoon. The facility has room for 77 people in seven individual rooms with 11 beds in each. Each room has its own bathroom and towels and linens will be provided. For more information call (212) 641.0023 or DaveA@ymcaatlanta.org.

And Action Church at 271 Marietta Road in Canton is now open for anyone seeking shelter from Hurricane Irma’s impacts. For more information contact Mike Atchison at 678-249-4193.

All six of the state's coastal communities have been ordered to evacuate by 8 a.m. Saturday, when authorities will change all of Interstate 16's lanes into a one-way route westbound. "If there's a freight train coming at you, then you get off the tracks," Tybee Island Mayor Jason Buelterman told the Associated Press. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

Residents from the state's coastal region have flooded into Atlanta hotels, and Interstate 16 was filled with cars headed away from the sea on Friday and early Saturday. At 4 p.m., the state will return the interstate to normal two-way traffic so emergency vehicles and equipment can reach the area; officials said there were few vehicles still headed west.

Watch: Georgia Coastal Residents Instructed To Evacuate

SEE ALSO: Hurricane Irma: 'Freight Train' Of A Storm Barrels Toward Florida, Georgia, Carolinas

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Evacuation Information
At a Friday morning press conference, Gov. Nathan Deal reiterated the importance of residents who are under the mandatory evacuations to heed those warnings. “If you are in a mandatory evacuation area, evacuate because we can not risk the lives of those who are trying to help others by sending them into areas that we have already identified that are going to be hazardous to everyone’s health and safety."

All areas east of I-95, all of Chatham County and some areas west of I-95 are under a mandatory evacuation starting at 8 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 9. This map shows if you live in the mandatory evacuation zones. Those zones are highlighted in yellow.

Shelter locations

Individuals with functional and access needs are welcome at all general population shelters and are encouraged to bring any medications and equipment with them, officials said. The following is the current list of Red Cross shelters, along with shelters that accept animals:

• Brooks (East Macon) Recreation Center: OPEN, 3326 Ocmulgee E Blvd, Macon, GA 31217
• North Macon Park Community Center: OPEN, 815 N Macon Park Dr, Macon, GA 31210
• Frank Johnson Recreation Center: OPEN, 2227 Mercer University Dr, Macon, GA 31201
• Columbus Civic Center: OPEN, 400 4th Street, Columbus, GA 31901
• Trinity on the Hill: OPEN, 1330 Monte Sano Ave, Augusta, GA 30904
• Westside High School: OPEN, 1102 Patriots Way, Augusta, GA 30907
• Blackshear Trail Elementary: OPEN, 1001 Blackshear Road, Cordele, GA 31015
• Waycross High School: OPEN, 700 Victory Dr, Waycross GA 31503
• Cross Point Church: OPEN, 4100 North Valdosta Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602
• First Baptist Church of Cuthbert: OPEN, 657 College St, Cuthbert, GA 39840
• Dublin High School: OPEN, 1127 Hillcrest Parkway, Dublin, GA 31021
• East Laurens High School: OPEN, 920 HWY 80 E, East Dublin, GA 31027
• Abraham Baldwin College: OPEN, 2802 Moore Highway, Tifton, GA 31793
• Albany Civic Center: OPEN, 100 W Oglethorpe Blvd, Albany, GA 31701
• Liberty Square Church: OPEN, 2001 Liberty Square Dr NE, Cartersville, GA 30121
  

Animal Shelters:

• Albany Humane Society: OPEN, 1705 West Oakridge Drive, Albany, Georgia 31707
• Macon Market Pet Shelter: OPEN, 2055 Eisenhower Parkway, Macon, GA 310206
• Muscogee PAWS Humane, Inc.: OPEN, 4900 Milgen Rd, Columbus GA 31907
• Okefenokee Fairgrounds: OPEN, 2451 Knight Avenue, Waycross, Georgia 31503
• The Pet Lodge: OPEN, 5970 Peach Parkway, Fort Valley, GA 31030
• Southern Pines: OPEN, 575 Southern Pines Rd, Dublin, GA 31021
• Augusta Animal Shelter: OPEN, 4330 Deans Bridge Road, Blythe, Augusta, Georgia 30805

Good Samaritan Shelters:
The list below is of good Samaritan shelters that officials know are available or soon-to-be available
throughout the state. Please note that this list in not all-inclusive.

• Freedom Church: OPEN with space available for pets, 500 Underwood Rd, Milledgeville, GA 31061
• Park Avenue United Methodist Church: OPEN with limited room available for those with pets, significant room available for those without pets, 100 E Park Ave Valdosta, GA 31602
• Macedonia Baptist Church: OPEN with space available for campsites, 3420 E Centerpoint Rd, Preston, GA 31824
• Scott Baptist Church: OPEN with space available for pets, 5 Archer Pond Smith Rd, Adrian, GA 31002
• Northside Baptist Church: OPEN, 423 E County Rd, Thomaston, GA 30286
• Remnant Church of God: opens 10:00 a.m. on Sat., Sept. 9, 83205 Memorial Drive Waycross, GA 31501
• Macedonia Baptist Church: opens 10 a.m. on Sat., Sept. 9, 702 Arnold McKinney Dr. Waycross, GA 31501
• Manor Community Center: opens at 1:00 p.m. on Sat., Sept 9, Manor-Millwood Rd. Manor, GA 31550
• Brewton Parker College Gillis Gymnasium: opens at 12:00 p.m., Sun., Sept. 10, 201 David-Eliza Fountain Circle Mount Vernon, Georgia 30445
• First Baptist Church of Mount Vernon: opens at 1:00 p.m., Sun., Sept. 10, Corner of US Hwy 280 & US Hwy 221 Mount Vernon, Georgia 30445
• Calvary Grace Baptist Church: opens at 1:00 p.m., Sun., Sept 10, 777 US Hwy 280, Ailey, Georgia 30410
• Zion Hill Free Will Baptist Church: opens at 1:00 p.m., Sun., Sept. 10, 3064 Zion Hill Road Millwood, GA 31552
• New Life Assembly of God Church: opens 1:00 p.m. on Sun., Sept. 10, 2191 Golf Course Road, Blackshear, GA 31516

Open Campgrounds:

West Point Lake has opened Holiday campground to accommodate evacuees from Hurricane Irma. Registration for a campsite will be handled at Holiday campground gatehouse. Although not required, evacuees are encouraged to call Holiday campground in advance at 706.884.6818.

Provide some form of identification that verifies they reside in one of the impacted areas from
this hurricane before obtaining a campsite. Address: 954 Abbottsford Road, LaGrange, Georgia 30240. The park is located off GA Highway 109, approximately 10 miles west of Lagrange, GA.

Atlanta Motor Speedway has opened its camping facilities free of charge on their unreserved campground facilities to evacuees seeking temporary refuge from the approaching Hurricane Irma. The speedway will open its facilities Thursday. Evacuees will have free access to hot showers and restroom facilities at the Rinnai Shower Station camper bath house. For more information, contact the speedway at (770) 946-4211 or go to www.atlantamotorspeedway.com.

A state of emergency now exists in these counties: Appling, Atkinson, Bacon, Baker, Baldwin, Ben Hill, Berrien, Bibb, Bleckley, Brantley, Brooks, Bryan, Bulloch, Burke, Calhoun, Camden, Candler, Charlton, Chatham, Chattahoochee, Clay, Clinch, Coffee, Colquitt, Cook, Crawford, Crisp, Decatur, Dodge, Dooly, Dougherty, Early, Echols, Effingham, Emanuel, Evans, Glynn, Grady, Harris, Houston, Irwin, Jeff Davis, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Jones, Lamar, Lanier, Laurens, Lee, Liberty, Long, Lowndes, Macon, Marion, McIntosh, Meriwether, Miller, Mitchell, Monroe, Montgomery, Muscogee, Peach, Pierce, Pike, Pulaski, Quitman, Randolph, Schley, Screven, Seminole, Stewart, Sumter, Talbot, Tattnall, Taylor, Telfair, Terrell, Thomas, Tift, Toombs, Treutlen, Troup, Turner, Twiggs, Upson, Ware, Washington, Wayne, Webster, Wheeler, Wilcox, Wilkinson and Worth Counties.
Patch file photo