CITY RECOVERS FROM HURRICANE MICHAEL

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Hurricane Michael may not have passed directly through Thomasville, but the high winds surrounding the storm were enough to cause significant damage to the community. Numerous trees are down throughout the city and many roads are impassable. Citizens are urged to stay home and off the roads if at all possible for the safety of themselves and our emergency responders.

“We understand that with daylight comes the curiosity to get out and survey the damage,” said Sheryl Sealy, Director of Marketing and Communications. “However, please understand that right now we really need for everyone to stay home and off the roads. We have public safety, public works and utility crews working, and this can be a hindrance to our recovery efforts.”

At present, Thomasville has about 200-300 trees that are down. In addition, 50-60 roads are either impassable or unsafe.

Chris White said that the City of Thomasville electric system suffered significant damage. “At this point, we have about 90% of our customers without power,” he said. “As we cautioned prior to this storm, the outages could be of a longer than normal duration. We anticipate it taking a minimum of one week to achieve full restoration of all customers.”

During last year’s Hurricane Irma event, White said that it took four days for all customers to be restored. “This storm’s damage was worse, and we expect it to take more time to bring all customers back on,” he said. “We ask for your patience as our crews work diligently throughout the next several days.”

White said that additional crews are on the way now from Tennessee. “We hope to have them working as early as this afternoon.” He said that the first priority is to restore service to the hospital and medical community. “From there, we will work to bring businesses like grocery stores and restaurants online, as we know many will depend on them while they are without power at home.”

“If you or someone in your home has a medical condition that requires you to have uninterrupted electrical power, please understand that the City of Thomasville may not be able to respond to your particular outage,” said White. “We therefore recommend that you seek alternative shelter that will provide you the uninterrupted power necessary for your condition.”

White said that in addition to electric outages, there is also damage to CNS’ telecommunications system. “We are assessing the damage at this time and will work to restore those services as quickly as possible.”

During the outage, citizens are urged to observe safety precautions while using generators. “All generators should be placed in well ventilated areas, away from doorways or windows,” said Tim Connell, Fire Marshal for Thomasville Fire Rescue. “Also, please disconnect the generator from the main breaker, as this creates a significant hazard for our linemen.” Connell also emphasized the need for fire safety when using lanterns, candles or other devices with an open flame. “Use caution and do not leave anything burning when you are asleep or away from your home.”

City of Thomasville administrative offices were closed at noon Tuesday, October 9th and have remained closed since. Full operations are expected to resume on Friday, October 12th.


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