Update: Georgia Power restores power to more than 200,000 customers following Tropical Storm Hermine

Work continues to repair damage at hundreds of locations in hard-hit Coastal Region

ATLANTA, Sept. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Across the state, more than 200,000 Georgia Power customers have had their electric service restored since the beginning of Tropical Storm Hermine. Once powerful winds subsided and conditions were safe for working at an elevation of more than 30 feet high, crews immediately began working to restore service as quickly as possible yesterday afternoon. Georgia Power's Coastal Region was hardest hit, with more than 100,000 customers impacted by heavy rain and high winds. The company has restored service to more than 70,000 of those customers and is working as swiftly and safely as possible to restore the remaining 30,000 customers. This is 10 percent of Coastal customers.

Large trees caused extensive damage in South and Coastal Georgia during Tropical Storm Hermine.

Georgia Power monitored Hermine for a week prior to landfall. The company's Storm Center in Atlanta has been open around the clock since Thursday tracking the storm and coordinating the company's response to restore service as quickly as possible. The company mobilized more than 3,200 personnel – including thousands of employees, contractors and crews from across the Southern Company system who moved into the Coastal area overnight – to respond to service interruptions. Hermine's forceful winds made it difficult for crews to work safely on Friday and impeded their progress much of the day.

As of noon Saturday, approximately 33,000 customers are without power – primarily in Savannah and the company's Coastal Region. Georgia Power line crews, field teams and all available resources are doing everything they can to restore power quickly and safely, including having electricians repair damaged electrical wiring on the outside of customers' homes.

Georgia Power will continue to keep issue updates as thousands of individual cases of damage are repaired today.

Storm tools and resources from the company:

Outage Alerts – Subscribe to the free Georgia Power Outage Alert service to receive personalized notifications and updates via text message.
Outage & Storm Center - Available at www.georgiapower.com/storm, customers can visit this site to sign up for Outage Alerts, report and check the status of outages, and access useful safety tips and information. Customers can also report and check the status of an outage 24 hours a day by contacting Georgia Power at 888-891-0938.
Outage Map – Housed within the Outage & Storm Center, Georgia Power's interactive Outage Map provides near real-time information, allowing users to see where outages are occurring across the state and track estimated restoration times.
Georgia Power Mobile App – Download the Georgia Power mobile app for Apple and Android devices to access storm and outage information on the go. Use the app anytime to access account information and mobile bill payment options, as well as energy efficiency tools.
@GeorgiaPower on Twitter – Follow @GeorgiaPower on Twitter for storm tips, outage updates, customer service and more.

About Georgia Power
Georgia Power is the largest subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), one of the nation's largest generators of electricity. Value, Reliability, Customer Service and Stewardship are the cornerstones of the company's promise to 2.5 million customers in all but four of Georgia's 159 counties. Committed to delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy at rates below the national average, Georgia Power maintains a diverse, innovative generation mix that includes nuclear, 21st century coal and natural gas, as well as renewables such as solar, hydroelectric and wind. Georgia Power focuses on delivering world-class service to its customers every day and the company is consistently recognized by J.D. Power and Associates as an industry leader in customer satisfaction. For more information, visit www.GeorgiaPower.com and connect with the company on Facebook (Facebook.com/GeorgiaPower) and Twitter (Twitter.com/GeorgiaPower).

Large trees caused extensive damage in South and Coastal Georgia during Tropical Storm Hermine. Georgia Power crews work to restore service to thousands and quickly and safely as possible.

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SOURCE Georgia Power

For further information: Media Relations, (404) 506-7676 or (800) 282-1696, www.georgiapower.com