Kemp offers state assistance for Idalia

Sep. 1—VALDOSTA — Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp along with state and local officials gathered Friday to update rural South Georgia on recovering from Hurricane Idalia's wrath.

Kemp was scheduled to tour several counties surrounding Lowndes and the City of Valdosta early Friday morning but due to weather that plan did not occur. Although he did not see the overall physical impact, Kemp spoke to local residents who were present during the storm.

"I know a lot of people in Valdosta. I have for a very long time, and the people here, many of them (are) telling me this is the worst storm ever in their lifetime," he said. "We're thankful this storm was narrow. We're thankful that this storm was fast moving but we're not thankful that we had a hurricane in the state of Georgia."

Kemp initially began the press conference thanking the City of Valdosta and Lowndes County leadership, law enforcement and first responders as well as nonprofit organizations such as the National Red Cross and state organizations including the Georgia National Guard, the Georgia Department of Transportation and the Georgia Forestry Commission for their assistance in recovering from the storm.

"Our response to the devastation that we've seen with the loss of power and the number of lines that were knocked down because of obviously a lot of trees down has been stellar," Kemp said. "We still have a lot of work to do. One of the things that we're dealing with with this storm, most people around the country don't realize the storm was on the ground and went through a longer path than it did in Florida or South Carolina."

One fatality was reported in Hurricane Idalia's aftermath. People were cutting up a fallen tree blocking Bemiss Road where one person was killed and a second person was injured.

Kemp announced that he formally requested assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency early Friday morning. The request will allow the start of individual damage requests. Requesters should expect the fulfillment process to be gradual as the state wants to ensure the requests are completed accurately.

James Stallings, Georgia Emergency Management director, said, "We are in this fight with this local community and the rest of them that were affected by the storm for the duration. We still have a lot of work to do, and we're going to be here and help get it done."

GEMA's biggest concern is continuing to clear the roads to allow power line workers access to places of need.

But the damage will continue to affect the rural community longer than a few days. More than 277,000 households and businesses within Georgia lost power during the storm. Now, the number has decreased to about 70,000.

Stallings said Georgia has accumulated an estimated $35 million in damages from the storm and the number continues to grow further supporting the state's request with FEMA.

When asked if any neighboring states have provided assistance, Kemp referred to Stalling who said every Southeastern state has reached out and offered assistance.

Kemp listed extensive damage as part of the storm impact.

The pecan industry located within the hurricane impact zone took a significant hit, according to Tyler Harper, the state's commissioner of agriculture. A little more than 13,000 businesses ranging from convenience stores, gas stations, meat facilities and even livestock and poultry farms were impacted.

Harper said, "My message to our producers is to document and report. Take pictures and ensure that you're documenting that you're getting that information to the appropriate folks."

The Georgia Department of Agriculture has created an email for individuals to report damage. Those reports should be sent to idalia@agr.georgia.gov. Harper said an online forum will be created in the near future to streamline the reporting process.

He said all animal injury requirements are suspended into the state of Georgia through the end of September, to help anybody out in the state of Florida, and to ensure that the animals are taken care of.