A number of critical roadways in the areas around coastal Georgia could be closed or otherwise become impassable for stretches of Wednesday and early Thursday as Hurricane Dorian is expected to exacerbate high tide and inundate certain low-lying passes.
Jekyll Island, in particular, is now currently cut off from exterior roadways.
Some of the other motorways likely to be impacted include Interstate-80 in Savannah and the only road leading out of St Simons Island.
Meanwhile, I-16 out of Savannah is actually being reopened to eastbound traffic after contraflow was put in place to facilitate evacuations, according to police departments in communities along the interstate.
According to Glynn County officials, both the Sidney Lanier Bridge, which connects Jekyll Island to Brunswick, and the Jekyll Island Causeway, which connects to US-17, are now closed.
Savannah, Georgia Hurricane Dorian photos
There is not currently a plan to close the F.J. Torras Causeway, however, "unless deemed dangerous or impassable," in order to allow for emergency responses to St. Simons Island for as long as possible.
The F.J. Torras Causeway connects St. Simons Island to Brunswick.
A high tide expected around roughly 1 p.m. is anticipated to be exacerbated by effects from Hurricane Dorian, which will likely bring water onto the roadways.
The effects could last for about two hours on either side of high tide, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Meanwhile, in Savannah, US-80 leading out of Tybee Island could require closures.
Officials in Chatham County said at a Wednesday press conference that they were anticipating US-80 could need to be closed if water touches the bottom of Bull Run Bridge, which crosses onto Tybee Island along the north of the island.
They said it was Georgia Department of Transportation protocol to shut the bridge until it could be inspected if water levels reach high enough to touch it.
They also said they anticipated that parts of US-80 could be "covered with water" around high tide based on current forecasts.
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.