UPDATED at 10:20 a.m. --
This from Bryan County EMS officials: Governor Kemp has lifted the evacuation orders for Georgia. Residents can begin returning home at this time. Bryan County residents of Hunter Army Airfield and Fort Stewart are to follow the guidelines of HAAF and Ft Stewart Senior Command.
Earlier story:
Preliminary reports are showing that Bryan County and surrounding areas were spared the worst from the passing of Hurricane Dorian, who now has her sight set on the Carolinas.
As daybreak sets in, residents are assessing their property and businesses. For most, the expected high winds during the evening and early-morning hours never materialized. There have only been scattered reports of power outages.
Bryan County Commission Chairman Carter Infinger and Richmond Hill Mayor Russ Carpenter announced around 8 a.m. that the area received "very minimal damage."
Infinger said there is no water over the roads and only scattered power outages. The wind is still blowing and there is a possibility of tree limbs falling because of the saturated ground, he added.
He said GEMA is calling Governor Kemp this morning to ask that he lift the mandatory evacuation order for those east of I-95, many who fled and are awaiting word when they can return. Infinger said he hopes that decision will be made this morning.
Carpenter said roads are open and the public can move around, but advised residents to stay off the roads for a bit while city and county crews complete their assessment.
Mark Bolton, representing Coastal Electric Cooperative, said "We were so fortunate!." He added, "We restored the last major outage at 8:39 p.m. last night (Strathy Hall area) then our linemen pulled back for safety while the storm passed."
Bolton said "Overnight there were just 139 people (out of 20,000) who lost power."
Linemen from the company worked into the morning, but were rewarded with a hot breakfast later. "Mark Thomas and Carl from Bubba's Bistro and Catering served our linemen breakfast in our auditorium at 6 a.m. this morning," Bolton said. "Trucks will be rolling out in a few minutes and we will quickly get everyone back on. These appear to be scattered outages. Hopefully nothing major."
A quick check from residents on the Bryan County News Facebook page are reporting the following:
Terri Jo Lin: All good Linwood ave!
Sarah M Davis: I drove from Harris Trail to Kilkenny Rd this morning and didn't see any trees or major limbs down.
Ansley Cobb: I’m in pembroke we didn’t loose power or anything.
Ingrid St Our corner of Waterways looks good!
Mindy Martin Berceli: All good at our house in Redbird Creek
April Louque Allen: Lost power for 3 hours on 67 outside of Pembroke but all is good other wise
Denise Flanagan Parker: All good in Ft Mc from what I can tell. Downed tree across the street but house ok
Kimberly Akins Walden: All good here at Black Creek!
Donnie Funk: All good In Ellabell !
Lisa Woodcock Tuttle: Never lost power and only a few small limbs on the ground in Heron Point.
Sam Bethea: So far White Oak looks good
Theresa Cowart: Pembroke Ga Hwy 119 looking great what I can see ...saw a car go by!
Here are some links to check if your residence has experienced a power outage.
Click on the provider to go to their website page.