BRUNSWICK, Ga. — A curfew is in effect in Glynn County Friday night so crews can work to restore power safely, according to the Glynn County Board of Commissioners.
The curfew is in place from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. Saturday. According to the board of commissioners, people are not supposed to be in public spaces unless they’re travelling to or from work or have a medical need.
There were still people out in downtown Brunswick after the curfew took effect, but they were few. People told First Coast News they thought the curfew was a good idea because power needs to be restored and the crews working on it need to be safe.
More than 30,000 customers were without power Friday night, according to Georgia Power, and there was no estimated restoration time.
“It’s been an adventure,” said Troy Landon. “We’ve made adjustments.”
Troy and Ashlee Landon are getting married Saturday. Their wedding weekend has not gone according to plan, but they said they’re making the most of it.
Anya Garnett, who was out with her bachelorette party, is doing the same thing.
“We’ll make the most of it at home,” Garnett said. “We’ll get some flashlights.”
Garnett and her friends and the Landons said they thought the curfew was a good idea. Dave Raczynski, who was also out in downtown Brunswick, thought so, too.
“It’s a good idea for everybody to get off the roads and be home and safe,” Raczynski said. “A lot of businesses aren’t open anyway.”
Raczynski’s thoughts were on the crews working to restore power lines, fix stoplights and lift trees off homes and cars.
Several streets in the city were blocked off Friday, with power lines or trees fallen across them, and many stoplights were out.
Part of the roof at a Friendly Express gas station on U.S. 17 collapsed and down the road from it, the "M" on a McDonald's sign was missing pieces from its golden arches.
In South Brunswick, a tree fell on a home and onto three cars on 4th Avenue. The people living there said no one was hurt. The man described the sound as scary and he didn't realize an entire tree had fallen until he came outside. The tree smashed through car windows, cut a mailbox post in two and damaged their home.
“Everything went bananas,” Raczynski said, describing Thursday night when Helene hit. “It was really windy and scary, debris flying and windows shaking in the house. It was not good.”
Much of St. Simons Island was without power Friday. The owner of Chub’s Diner, Cameron Krich, made the most of the power outage by grilling food for the community, so it wouldn’t go to waste.
“It feels good,” Krich said. “It makes it worth it trying to help each other out.”
The Landons, on the eve of their wedding, are now ready to weather the next storm together, too.
”You can’t plan for unexpected things a year out, so you just kind of have to make the best of it and rely on family and friends,” Troy Landon said.
“All of our friends are here,” said Ashlee Landon. “Whatever happens, everyone’s here.”
Many shops downtown have power and people out Friday said they were relieved to be able to visit a local shop to spend time in air conditioning and have cellphone service.