SAVANNAH, Ga. – Gov. Brian Kemp has extended Georgia’s state of emergency as the Peach State works to recover from Tropical Storm Debby.

On Thursday, the governor extended the order for the entire state until Aug. 15 due to flooding dangers.

Kemp and first lady Marty Kemp will tour parts of Southeast Georgia by helicopter on Friday to evaluate the storm’s coastal damage.

Some residents of southeast Georgia were warned to brace for additional flooding even after Debby had cleared out for the Carolinas, as rivers swollen with rainfall overflowed their banks.

The Ogeechee River west of Savannah was forecast to reach its major flood stage Thursday night and crest early Sunday. Emergency officials in Effingham County called for some residents near the river to evacuate.

Officials in neighboring Chatham County, which includes Savannah, allowed residents to decide whether to leave, although rescue teams with boats had already retrieved 17 people from homes threatened by river flooding.

Chatham County Commission Chairman Chester Ellis said at a news conference to expect water where it hasn’t been seen before.

“If you have a substantial amount of water in your yards, I would say evacuate now while you still have a chance,” he added.

Kemp signed the state of emergency executive order on Monday after the storm made landfall, authorizing the Georgia National Guard to use troops to support the recovery efforts.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Georgians casting ballots this November will have the option to choose from among at least three presidential candidates. Others say they have earned the right for a shot at the White House, but the Democratic Party of Georgia is trying to keep them out of the running.

Four third party presidential candidates say they are preparing to fight challenges from state Democrats to their ability to appear on the ballot this November.

Jacob Dallas-Main, a volunteer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, said Georgia Democrats have been especially aggressive against the socialist candidate, Claudia De la Cruz,

“We know this is because Georgia is sort of a new purple state, a new swing state,” he said. “They want to fight it out here, but we say the people of the South should have options, and if the Democrats or the Republicans want to win in this state, they should win on the merits of their own programs, and they should actually deliver things to the people, not just try to force someone into the lesser of two evils.”

Speaking at a press conference near the state Capitol Thursday, Dallas-Main and other volunteers said they worked hard to collect nearly 16,000 signatures from Georgia voters ahead of a July deadline. State law requires 7,500 valid signatures to secure a spot on the ballot.

“We collected more than double the required amount of signatures because we know that for one reason or another a signature could be invalidated,” said campaign volunteer Estevan Hernandez. “This was a serious effort on behalf of all of our volunteers, many of whom clocked out of their nine to fives and immediately spent the rest of the afternoon and evening petitioning on both weekends and weekdays for three months.”

But in July, state Democrats launched a complaint with Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office alleging the De la Cruz campaign, along with the campaigns of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Cornel West, claiming flaws with their signatures and application processes. The Democrats are also challenging Green Party candidate Jill Stein, whose campaign took a different route toward appearing on the ballot. Rather than collecting signatures, the Stein campaign hopes to appear on the ballot via a new state law allowing candidates who have made the ballot in at least 20 other states to also appear on Georgia’s ballots.

“We take the nomination process very seriously and believe everyone should follow the rules. At this time, it appears that campaigns for RFK, Jr. Cornel West, Claudia De la Cruz, and the Georgia Green Party have not faithfully observed the state of Georgia’s election laws. They have missed numerous statutory deadlines, skipped filing fees, submitted the wrong names on the nomination petitions, and some failed to hold conventions. None of these candidates are qualified to be on the Georgia ballot,” said Democratic Party of Georgia Executive Director Tolulope Kevin Olasanoye.

Recent polls have put Vice President Kamala Harris in a better position to win swing states like Georgia than her boss, President Joe Biden, with pollsters and politicos shifting the state from leaning toward Republican Donald Trump to a toss-up.

Recent polls also suggest third parties, especially Kennedy, could be taking away more votes from Trump than Harris.

In a Zoom call with members of the media late last month, Kennedy campaign staff expressed confidence that they would win the case in Georgia, which includes allegations that they filled out petitions in the wrong form.

“It’s one of those sort of throwing spaghetti at the wall kind of things,” said senior ballot access council Paul Rossi. “The petitions are on the right forms. They’ve also made the allegation that the presidential electors didn’t pay a filing fee. Well, there is no filing fee in Georgia for presidential electors, so it’s one of those challenges which, because they can’t challenge the signatures, they’ve made allegations which are simply not correct at law.”

Cornel West spokesman Edwin De Jesus said the state party’s actions were undemocratic.

“The fact that the Democrats had a ballot access challenge pre-planned before our electors even filed their paperwork is a clear indication that there was an attempt to suppress competition rather than identify a nominee who truly speaks to the issues of working people. This undermines the democratic ideals they claim to uphold,” he said.

De Jesus said the campaign is engaging with legal experts ahead of a hearing of the Georgia Office of State Administrative Hearings scheduled for Aug. 22. The Stein campaign has confirmed it has a hearing scheduled on the same day, and De la Cruz’ volunteers said their hearing is scheduled for Aug. 19.

Dallas-Main said voters are increasingly calling for choices beyond the two major parties, and he predicted that will continue even if De la Cruz and vice presidential

candidate Karina Garcia don’t make their way onto Georgia ballots.

“Even if we were to be defeated – and to be clear, we do not expect to be defeated. We have a strong argument – But even if we were to be defeated, we’re going to go on organizing,” he said. “We’re going to go on talking about the need for organization outside the Democratic and Republican Party, and we’re going to go on spreading this message, organizing, hitting the streets, doing the work, wherever it needs to be done.”

Jobs available in Engineering, Maintenance, Operations and more

ATLANTA, Aug. 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Every time a Georgia Power customer flips the light switch at their home or business, the energy delivered to power that light fixture started at a power generation facility. This August, the company is celebrating Generation Appreciation Month, a time to recognize the more than 1,100 team members who work tirelessly in power plants across state to keep reliable energy flowing to the grid on hot summer days, cold winter mornings and every hour in between. Throughout the month, Georgia Power invites customers, and potential employees, to explore the diverse nature of the Generation team’s work and the wide array of career opportunities for skilled workers.

“In life, as well as with Georgia Power’s power generation facilities, there is no one-size-fits-all option,” said Rick Anderson, senior vice president and senior production officer for Georgia Power. “From the existing facilities that have powered Georgia for decades, to newer sources of generation such as renewable energy, cleaner natural gas and battery storage, Georgia Power’s diverse generation mix continues to evolve to meet the needs of a growing Georgia. To keep the energy flowing, we need a workforce that is just as advanced and diverse.”

Based on available opportunities, a career in power generation offers many possibilities for those who join the team. Career paths exist in the areas of Operations, Maintenance, Electrical, Instrumentation, Engineering and more. Last year, the company hired over 80 team members across generation facilities and expects the hiring trend to continue in the coming years. Strong training programs exist in Operations, along with apprenticeships in Mechanical and Electrical, which develop experienced journeymen who work safely to keep energy flowing to the grid, 24/7.

Tobias Brown is a general plant operator at Plant McDonough-Atkinson, a combined cycle natural gas plant located just northwest of Atlanta. The plant is home to three generation units, which entered operation in 2012, and are capable of producing 2,520 megawatts of electricity and, on average, can supply enough energy to power approximately 1.7 million homes. The plant also is at the forefront of energy advancements, and recently hosted a major hydrogen fuel blending test as part of Georgia Power’s commitment to advancing clean energy (read more).

Brown started his career with Georgia Power in 2008 and discusses his experience in this video (link) alongside several of his colleagues at the plant.

“We all know we all play a big part in the success of this power plant – just knowing that you did your part gives me a sense of enjoyment,” said Brown. “It’s challenging, can be demanding at times, but it’s rewarding at the end.”

Generation careers involve continuous learning. These employees continue to train and learn throughout their career. Consider the Rockmart training facility where Electrical, Mechanical, and Instrumentation and Control Technicians hone their skills each year. In 2023, this facility conducted nearly 3,000 hours of both hands-on and classroom instruction. Subject matter experts from both Southern Company and external entities visited to assist in this cutting-edge training program.

Reliability for Georgia Power customers really starts in the company’s generation facilities. In 2023, the company’s generation fleet helped keep reliability high with experienced teams at hydro, natural gas, nuclear and coal-fired generation plants managing plant operations and maintenance activities at a level of excellence well above industry standards. Non-nuclear generation assets measure reliability with plant outage rate or “equivalent forced outage rate” (EFOR). Last year, Georgia Power’s EFOR score was among the best in company history and among the best in the industry, with an outage rate of 1.49%. Georgia Power also continues to add renewable energy and battery energy storage to its generation mix, with reliability at the center of its planning process, and the company’s existing solar generation performing strongly as well in 2023.

If you’re interested in a rewarding career with Georgia Power, and joining a dedicated team powering Georgia’s growing economy, visit this link to learn about opportunities and how to get started.

About Georgia Power
Georgia Power is the largest electric subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), America’s premier energy company. Value, Reliability, Customer Service and Stewardship are the cornerstones of the company’s promise to 2.7 million customers in all but four of Georgia’s 159 counties. Committed to delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy, Georgia Power maintains a diverse, innovative generation mix that includes nuclear, 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 recognized by J.D. Power as an industry leader in customer satisfaction. For more information, visit www.GeorgiaPower.com and connect with the company on Facebook (Facebook.com/GeorgiaPower), X(https://x.com/georgiapower ) and Instagram (Instagram.com/ga_power).

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SOURCE Georgia Power