VALDOSTA, Georgia (AP) — As the hurricane’s eye passed near Valdosta, Georgia, a city of 55,000 near the Florida line, dozens of people huddled early Friday in a darkened hotel lobby. The wind whistled and howled outside.
Electricity was out, with hallway emergency lights, flashlights and cellphones providing the only illumination. Water dripped from light fixtures in the lobby dining area, and roof debris fell to the ground outside.
Fermin Herrera, 20, his wife and their 2-month-old daughter left their room on the top floor of the hotel, where they took shelter because they were concerned about trees falling on their Valdosta home.
“We heard some rumbling,” said Herrera, cradling the sleeping baby in a downstairs hallway. “We didn’t see anything at first. After a while the intensity picked up. It looked like a gutter that was banging against our window. So we made a decision to leave.”
In Thomas County, Georgia, where residents had been under a curfew, the sheriff’s office said it was extended until noon Friday.
“This curfew helps protect first responders and citizens of our community as conditions are still very hazardous. Please shelter in place,” the office posted online.
Helene is the third storm to strike the city in just over a year. Tropical Storm Debby blacked out power to thousands in August, while Hurricane Idalia damaged an estimated 1,000 homes in Valdosta and surrounding Lowndes County a year ago.
“I feel like a lot of us know what to do now,” Herrera said. “We’ve seen some storms and grown some thicker skins.”
Soon after it crossed over land, Helene weakened to a tropical storm, with its maximum sustained winds falling to 70 mph (110 kph). At 5 a.m., the storm was about 40 miles (65 kilometers) east of Macon, Georgia, and about 100 miles (165 kilometers) southeast of Atlanta, moving north at 30 mph (48 kph), the National Hurricane Center in Miami reported.
The American Red Cross recommends taking these actions during an extended power outage:
- Monitor alerts— this includes weather reports and safety notifications from local governments.
- Contact your support network. Let your family, friends and neighbors know you're okay and see how they're doing.
- Unplug unneeded appliances and electronics to prevent an overload.
- Prevent carbon monoxide poisoning— only use a generator outside and away from windows, and never use outdoor stoves indoors.
