Things seem to be slowing down. Here is the latest that we know…
Power Outages as of 5:40pm:
Georgia Power: 653
EMC: 2,367
School Updates:
- Bulloch County Schools will reopen Wednesday, Sept. 13 – please see note below
- Bulloch Academy will reopen Wednesday, Sept. 13
- Ogeechee Technical College will reopen for employees on Wednesday, Sept. 13 and classes will resume for students on Thursday, Sept. 14
- Georgia Southern University will reopen and resume classes Thursday, Sept. 14
Note from Bulloch County Schools…
“BULLOCH PUBLIC SCHOOLS OPEN TOMORROW – waiting on decision on Nevils Elementary:
All of our schools will reopen on a normal schedule on Wednesday, Sept. 13, except Nevils Elementary. We will make a decision about Nevils Elementary by 8 p.m. tonight. All of our schools have power and water, except Nevils Elementary, which does not have water, but workers are addressing the issue.
We understand that families were affected by the storm in different ways. If you decide you are unable to return when schools reopen, provide a parent note when you return, and your school’s principal will work with you and decide if absences are excused. If you are an employee, and you will not be here Wednesday, please communicate with your principal or supervisor.
None of our schools were damaged during the storm. Our Transportation Department and School Food Services Department made proper preparations before the storm to ensure food supplies and the safety of our food supplies.
Bulloch County is up and running today. After meeting with the Bulloch County Emergency Management Agency, law enforcement, public works and local utility providers, it is safe to reopen our schools. All other public, private and charter K-12 schools in Bulloch County are reopening Wednesday as well.
If you evacuated out of the area and are driving back, the Georgia Department of Transportation encourages you to use alternate state and federal highway routes. These are usually under utilized and Interstates 16, 75, and 95 may be very crowded.
We understand that Georgia Southern and Ogeechee Technical College are closed on Wednesday. Their operations and decisions will usually differ from ours because GA Southern has to consider its student housing on campus and the fact that both GS and OTC have faculty and student bases from not only surrounding counties but statewide.”
Landfill and Recycling Center Updates:
- Due to impacts from Hurricane Irma on the landfill that receives our solid waste the Statesboro-Bulloch transfer station/inert landfill remains closed today but will reopen tomorrow under normal hours. As a result no City of Statesboro Sanitation services are operational today. We will resume collection services tomorrow, however, yard waste service will resume next week.Residential garbage collection will operate under the following schedule this week:Wednesday, Sept 13 – Monday routes and Tuesday routes will be collected
Thursday, Sept 14 – Wednesday routes and Thursday routes will be collectedPlease have your polycarts placed curbside no later than 6:00am according to the schedule above. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
- Bulloch County Recycling Centers Operations Update…Food Spoilage and Household Garbage ONLY until further notice. Recycling centers will resume normal operating hours tomorrow, Wednesday, September 13.
No bulk or yard waste at this time. Watch for updates as to when the centers resume normal drop-off operations.
The County asks that you please do not put yard waste at your curb.
From the Bulloch County Board of Commissioners…
UPDATE: Bulloch County business operations will resume Wednesday, September 13. Bulloch County Public Works is continuing to assess dirt road conditions while the majority of known issues have been resolved, with the exception of a few roads that are still being cleared to become passable. Thankfully, power outages around the county are continually declining but are more prominent in rural areas. Look for more information regarding Recycling Center operations soon.
There are many people that Bulloch County wishes to thank for preparation and response to this storm. Our Public Safety and Public Works functions were superbly prepared. We’d also like to thank Bulloch VOAD, who pulled a heavy load, and many other businesses and private contractors who supported emergency functions and offered relief to those who were adversely affected by Irma. All of these people were invaluable.
Please continue to check Bulloch County Public Safety/EMA‘s Facebook page for the latest information regarding power outages and cleanup/recovery.