Hurricane Michael was a Category 4 storm when it made landfall on the Florida Panhandle Wednesday afternoon.
As the storm moved through Georgia it decreased in strength, becoming a tropical storm Thursday morning by the time it reached Augusta. But Michael still left his mark, leaving destruction throughout the state.
At the storm’s strongest in the Peach State, at least 400,000 customers were without power, at least 127 roads were blocked, and the storm claimed the life of one child.
Here’s a breakdown of Hurricane Michael’s damage in Georgia as of Thursday afternoon. This information is likely to change as local and state officials survey their areas and begin working through Michael’s aftermath.
Fatalities - 1
An 11-year-old girl in Seminole County was killed after debris crashed into her family's home, authorities said. It is the only known casualty from the storm in Georgia.
Another person was killed in a multi-vehicle crash on I-20 East in DeKalb County on Thursday morning, however the death hasn’t officially been attributed to the storm. “I think there’s little doubt that this crash ... (is) a result of driving on wet pavement as the remnants of Michael came through metro Atlanta,” said Mark Arum of Channel 2 Action News.
Roads blocked - 127
At 9:33 a.m. Thursday, a spokeswoman with the Georgia Department of Transportation said there were at least 127 incidents where state roads were blocked because of downed trees or debris.
In Albany, at least 100 intersections were blocked Thursday morning.
Rainfall high - 7.68 inches
Michael dumped several inches of water in Georgia causing flash flooding across the state.
According to the National Weather Service, McDonough received the most rain of any city in Georgia, getting 7.68 inches.
Smyrna got 6.92 inches of rain, while Powder Springs got 6.34 inches. Those Cobb County cities were followed by Roswell with 6.20 inches.
Further south, Macon saw 5.04 inches; Fort Benning, along the Georgia-Alabama border, measured rain totals at 4.58 inches; and Columbus Metro Airport recorded 3.29 inches.
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Bridges closed - 1
The Georgia Department of Transportation had inspected six bridges in areas hit by the storm as of 11:50 a.m. on Thursday. It has plans to inspect 59 more. Just one, the Talmadge Bridge in Savannah, remains closed.
Delta flights cancelled - 80
Atlanta-based Delta Airlines canceled 80 flights Wednesday and Thursday to cities in coastal Florida and parts of Georgia due to Hurricane Michael. The cancellations included Tallahassee, Panama City and Destin-Fort Walton Beach in Florida; Albany and Valdosta in Georgia; and Dothan in Alabama.
By Thursday afternoon, Delta had largely resumed flights to those areas. No disruptions at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport were expected.
Tornado warnings - 12
The National Weather Service issued 12 tornado warnings in Georgia during Hurricane Michael, according to its Twitter feed. A tornado warning is an alert issued when tornadoes are imminent or occurring.
Thursday afternoon, Channel 2 Action News confirmed with the National Weather Service that a tornado touched down in Fulton County, near the Cascade Heights neighborhood. It is being classified as an EF-0.
There have been three suspected tornadoes in the hours since Michael reached South Georgia on Wednesday. Three tornadoes are believed to have touched down in Fort Valley, Roberta and Perry. The National Weather Service has not yet confirmed if any tornadoes landed in Georgia.
Wind gust - 115 mph
The maximum wind gust recorded for the state during the storm was 115 mph in Donalsonville in Seminole County. At its worst, Michael’s winds hit 40 mph in Atlanta and Athens.
READ | Michael leaves Atlanta with downed trees, power outages, road closures
READ | Hurricane Michael: Damage in Georgia is 'phenomenal'
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Power outages – 400,000
After Michael blew through Georgia, more than 400,000 customers were without power Thursday morning. That number had grown exponentially from Wednesday afternoon around 4:30 p.m. when 32,000 customers were in the dark just after Michael began its trek into the state.
By Thursday at 1 p.m., about 340,000 Georgia Power and Georgia EMC customers were still affected.
Power crews from around the country and in other areas of Georgia, including 97 Jackson EMC contractors, were headed to the state’s impacted areas in South Georgia to help restore power.
Chicken houses destroyed - 53
Officials from Coffee, Houston, Mitchell, Wilcox and Decatur counties reported that at least 53 poultry houses had been wiped out Thursday morning.
AJC staff writer Janel Davis contributed to this story.
Get complete coverage and forecasts for Hurricane Michael on AJC.com
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