Georgia Declares Statewide Emergency as Hurricane Isaias Approaches
ATLANTA — Governor Brian P. Kemp declared a state of emergency for all 159 Georgia counties on October 8 in preparation for Hurricane Isaias. The governor also directed the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA) to activate the State Operations Center beginning Friday afternoon, October 9.
"As we always do with weather events, we're hoping for the best but preparing for the worst," Kemp said. "I encourage all Georgians to take this storm seriously and prepare now." GEMA Director Josh Lamb said the storm is expected to make landfall on the Gulf Coast Friday evening with impacts continuing through Saturday; strong wind gusts and heavy rain statewide could bring spin-off tornadoes, downed trees and power lines, flooding and other effects.
The executive order allows the state to pre-position emergency resources and authorizes Kemp to call up as many as 500 Georgia National Guard troops if needed. Forecasters expected Isaias to make landfall Friday night as a hurricane, bringing dangerous weather to north Georgia starting Saturday.
The National Weather Service forecast 2 to 4 inches of rain across Georgia from Friday night into the weekend, with more than 6 inches possible in some areas, along with a risk of flash flooding and tornadoes.
Sources: Office of the Georgia Governor; Atlanta News First
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：飓风卫星云图。摄影：MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC，公有领域，来源：Wikimedia Commons
