Over 70K Chatham County Residents Without Power: Hurricane Irma

SAVANNAH, GA — There are over 70,000 people in Chatham County without power as of Monday afternoon, as high winds down trees and power lines throughout the county, Georgia Power confirmed. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

As of 3 p.m. there are 73,874 customers without power throughout Chatham County, and more than 670,000 customers without power in Georgia. Georgia Power is prepared to respond with about 3,400 personnel from the company and responders from other companies assisting to restore power as quickly and safely as possible following Irma.

Georgia Power expects widespread, extensive damage throughout the state. Once the storm leaves the affected areas, the company must wait until conditions are safe for damage assessment teams to begin the restoration process, according to a press release from the company.

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

See Also:

• Hurricane Irma: 1 Million Without Power Across Georgia
  
• Tornado Watch Extended In Chatham County: National Weather Service
  
• Very Little Damage Reported In Savannah Monday: Hurricane Irma
  
• Highway 80 To Tybee Island Closed: Hurricane Irma
  
• Savannah-Chatham Schools Roll Out Schedules: Hurricane Irma

The restoration process can take up to several days, if not weeks, Georgia Power said. While Georgia Power has contacted and requested aid through the national mutual assistance network consisting of dozens of utilities from around the country, resources have first been assigned to harder-hit areas in Florida.

View Georgia Power's power outage map here.

Georgia Power provides these storm safety tips for residents:

• Watch for downed wires, which may be hidden by debris or fallen trees.
• Never touch any downed wire or attempt to remove tree branches from power lines.
• Don't step in standing water or saturated ground where downed lines may be present, as they could be electrified.
• Avoid chain link fences, which may be electrified by a downed line out of sight and conduct electricity over great distances.

Residents are asked to notify Georgia Power of power outages. You can call 1-888-891-0938 or visit their website here.

Photo: Tybee Island Police Department