Hurricane Irma: Rain Moves Into Metro Atlanta; Conditions Expected To Worsen

ATLANTA, GA — Rainy conditions are now widespread across metro Atlanta and Georgia, as Tropical Storm Irma makes its way toward the Peach State. The tropical storm warning issued Sunday for the area remains in effect, and the entire state is also under a flash flood watch, the National Weather Service states.

The storm was downgraded from a Category 1 hurricane early Monday morning as it departed Florida and entered southern Georgia near Albany.

"In a nutshell, conditions will deteriorate today from south to north," NWS said early Monday morning on its Facebook page. "Rain is on the increase and expect your winds to increase to 35 mph sustained with gusts over 50 mph at times. Trees coming down will be a big threat as the ground becomes saturated."

Also See: Hurricane Irma Weakens To A Tropical Storm, But It's Still Dangerous

Peach State residents are encouraged to stay off the roads, and Delta has already cancelled 800 flights as Irma is "expected to bring to the Atlanta hub strong crosswinds that exceed operating limits on select mainline and regional aircraft," it said on its website. MARTA, the city's rapid transit service that extends into parts of Fulton, DeKalb and Clayton counties, has also suspended bus, rail and mobility services. Atlanta's streetcar service has also been suspended due to the anticipated tropical storm conditions.

Irma currently packs winds of 70 mph and gusts of 80 mph. As the day goes on, you can expect wind speeds to reach 30 to 40 mph and gusts to 55 mph. The National Weather Service also predicts 3 to 5 inches of rain to fall, meaning there's a risk of flash flooding throughout the area.

Monday's projected timeline of the impact around metro Atlanta (which is subject to change) is as follows:

At 11 a.m., sustained winds increase to 30 mph with maximum gusts at 40 mph. Bands with stronger winds and rain start to enter the metro area.

At 2 p.m., bands of strong winds fully enter the metro area. Sustained winds at 31 mph with maximum guests around 45 mph.

At 5 p.m., rain and strong winds continue. Sustained winds of 36 mph with maximum guests at 48 mph associated with the bands.

At 8 p.m., sustained winds of 39 mph with maximum gusts of 54 mph.

At 11 p.m., the storm begins to exit Georgia into Alabama. Sustained winds at 39 mph with maximum gusts of 54 mph.

According to Georgia Power, more than 180,000 customers are without power as of 9 a.m. Monday. The organization also said on its Facebook page that it's ready to respond with about 3,400 personnel from the company and other assisting utilities.

"We are ready to restore power as quickly and safely as possible following the storm," it said. "All of our resources are being held and dedicated to storm restoration efforts in the state following Hurricane Irma."

Of course, readers are asked to visit georgiapower.com/storm to sign up for Outage Alerts, report and check the status of outages and access useful safety tips and information.

All of Georgia's 159 counties remain under a state of emergency issued Sunday afternoon by Gov. Nathan Deal, action that forced all public school systems, colleges and universities and private school institutions to cancel classes and close their offices. Additionally, Georgia government operations, along with many city, county and judicial system offices, are also closed (Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.).

Here's the latest on what you need to know as Tropical Storm Irma churns through Georgia:

• Metro Atlanta school systems are closed, including Atlanta, Bartow, Cartersville, Cherokee, Cobb, Decatur, DeKalb, Douglas, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Marietta and Paulding, just to name a few.
• Major universities such as the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Georgia State, Kennesaw State University, Emory University and the University of West Georgia are also closed for business and classes.
• Social media users are losing it over the news of a tropical storm warning blanketing Atlanta.
• Full List Of Georgia Evacuation Shelters, Where To Take Pets
• Get Ready For Widespread Georgia Power Outages

Image via National Weather Service