Hurricane Debby made landfall Monday morning as a Category 1 storm. She apparently likes it so much in the area that she’s decided to hang around for as long as possible. And that means that the counties in her path are going to receive a historic amount of rainfall.
At the 1:30 p.m. weather briefing, Al Sandrick of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) gave a report on Debby’s whereabouts and what those in her way could expect. At the time of the briefing, Debby’s core had stalled over Suwannee County, Florida. She is a well-formed storm system and as such is dumping a lot of rain on the communities over which she is traveling. “We are expecting major to extreme flooding along the core of the storm,” said Sandrik.
As Debby moves ever so slowly on a northeast track – right now she’s headed to Waycross – the wind threat is diminishing. That doesn’t mean that winds won’t be a factor. Coffee County can expect sustained winds in the 20-30 mph range with some estimates calling for 40-50 mph sustained winds. The tornado threat for Coffee County remains low; the main tornado threat, albeit a weak one, stretches from Jesup to Cedar Key.
For Coffee County, the worst will arrive later than originally expected due to Debby stalling. County EMA director Steve Carver said that midnight to 3 a.m. is when the worst of the storm will arrive; the few hours prior to midnight and after midnight will be the most serious. That could change, Carver said, depending on whether Debby speeds up or slows down. He added that Coffee County should expect 10-12 inches of rain in addition to what has already fallen. He reiterated that a local shelter is opening at 3 p.m. The Red Cross should be on the scene by 6 p.m.
Power outages are already being reported – the lights went off at the EMA building just as the meeting was starting – and Carver asked that all citizens treat downed power lines as if they are live. He cautioned people to not attempt to move trees or limbs that are entangled with power lines. Instead, contact the power companies and let them take care of the downed lines. To take action yourself is to risk electrocution.
The next weather briefing will take place at 6:30 p.m.