ATLANTA — Gov. Brian Kemp activated up to 2,000 Georgia National Guard troops Monday night to be available for Hurricane Dorian preparation, response and recovery.
An executive order by the governor authorized the state Department of Defense to call up the guardsmen to active duty. The order authorizing their activation will be good for a week, until Sept. 9.
The governor declared a state of emergency for 12 southeast Georgia counties closest to the coast last week ahead of Dorian's expected impact.
The hurricane remains over the Bahamas as of Monday morning, where it has slowly continued to churn toward Florida's east coast. It is expected to begin turning north sometime later Tuesday.
Georgia could begin feeling the effects from the storm sometime Wednesday.
A mandatory evacuation for six counties east of I-95 is also in effect. Interstate-16 out of Savannah was turned into a one-way motorway on Tuesday morning, with contraflow in effect.
"This is not one to play around with," the governor said at a Savannah press conference on Monday.
RELATED: 'Not one to play around with:' Kemp urges residents to heed evacuation order ahead of Dorian
He said he would "ask everyone to heed those warnings" and that "you may be on your own" if you try to ride out the storm at home.
"Please don't take this risk," Kemp said.
State of Georgia Resources
- View up-to-date emergency declarations from Governor Kemp here.
- View updates from Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency here.
- Visit Ready Georgia for weather alerts and emergency preparedness tips.
- Follow Georgia 511 for real-time traffic information.
- Learn what to do before, during, and after a flood here.
- Report power outages by contacting your power provider. The two main providers in Georgia are:
- Call your local non-emergency police line to report a downed tree on a main road.
Please stay aware of any forecast changes as there are still many questions that remain about where Dorian goes after impacting Florida.