Hurricane Michael update 2:00 p.m. October 10

Source:  Nassau County Insider

10/10/18 @ 2:00 p.m. – At this morning’s Conference Call of the Executive Policy Group, Emergency Management Director, Billy Estep, stated that Hurricane Michael is now being referred to as a “historical storm” due to its size and strength and indicated that tropical storm force winds will be felt as far north as Augusta, Ga.

Current wind predictions for Nassau County are between 20-35 mph from 3:00 p.m. to midnight, and then between 35-50 mph from midnight to noon tomorrow. The west side of the County has the potential for power outages and tornadoes. The east side of the County has already experienced fallen debris and will be in danger of possible tornadoes and water spouts.

We’ve been told that Okefenokee Electric has ample resources to respond to power outages in their service areas on the west side of the County and that Florida Power & Light will be staging 150 trucks near Hilliard to respond to outages to their customers throughout the County. Residents are reminded to avoid downed power lines and to report them as soon as possible.

Employees of the Nassau County Road & Bridge Department and Facilities Maintenance Department will be working throughout the night to respond to calls as needed. Officers will be stationed by the bridges to monitor wind conditions and will close bridges if we experience sustained (continuous) winds of 39mph or greater for 3 minutes. If the bridges close, they will reopen as soon as winds speeds subside to a safe level for travel.

The Emergency Operations Center will remain activated to a Level II and will have staff and volunteers answering phones and watching the storm as it progresses throughout the evening. If you have any questions, they can be reached at (904) 548-0900.

The Journey Church in Fernandina Beach has indicated they can open their doors for shelter and can take up to 130 people. They are not currently open at this time, however will be on standby should Emergency Management determine there is a need. Should the County need to open a shelter, it will be at the Hilliard Middle Senior High School. Please note there are currently NO plans to open a County operated shelter at this time.

Nassau County Schools have cancelled all after school activities, however there are currently NO plans to cancel school tomorrow.

-Sabrina Robertson
County Manager’s Office