UPDATES: Gov. Kemp says Georgia is prepared for Hurricane Isaias

by Atlanta First News staff

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Hurricane Isaias, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, became a Category 3 storm on Friday morning, with wind speeds up to 120 mph. On Thursday, Gov. Brian Kemp issued a state of emergency to help free up resources to address the storm.

Gov. Kemp gave an update on the state’s Hurricane Isaias preparations on Friday morning during a $2 billion biologics manufacturing facility in Gwinnett County.

FULL FORECAST: Isaias now a major hurricane; Showers to start in north Georgia tonight

In north Georgia, showers will start on Friday night, while Saturday will bring heavy rain, gusty winds and possible isolated tornadoes. Sunday, meanwhile, will be cloudy and rainy, with the worst of the storm already over.

UPDATES:

5 p.m. | Crews in Atlanta started preparing for Hurricane Isaias.

4 p.m. | GEMA officials are set to give an update on the state’s preparations for Hurricane Isaias.

3 p.m. | Isaias will approach the middle Gulf coast today with a landfall expected late tonight or early Saturday. Below is a rotating live beach cameras stream from Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.

2 p.m. | Gwinnett County officials gave an update Friday ahead of Hurricane Isaias.

12:30 p.m. | In a media briefing, Gov. Kemp warned that downed trees and damaged power lines could knock out power. He recommended Georgians stock up on food and water and fill up their gas tanks, just in case.

“We just want everybody to be prepared. Not alarmed, but just be prepared,” he said. “We’ll keep everybody up to date, and our team’s ready to go.”

He added that the state’s emergency order allows the deployment of 500 National Guard members, but he doesn’t expect they will be needed.

Georgia is currently under a state of emergency.

12 p.m. | All Atlanta Pride events, including the festival, are canceled on Saturday. The parade, scheduled for Sunday at 12 p.m., has not been impacted yet.

10:30 a.m. | Cobb County officials give an update on storm preparations. They are mostly worried about flooding, downed trees and powerlines.

Cobb County Department of Transportation Director Drew Raessler said crews have been clearing storm drains in areas prone to flooding. He also encouraged the public to stay away from and report any fallen trees or broken powerlines.

“We encourage everyone to just be aware of what’s going on, to be safe, to stay off the roads if at all possible,” he said.