Michael Not Expected to Have Major Impact on Stephens County, Forecasters Say

Toccoa-Stephens County are beginning to feel some of the outer bands of what is now Hurricane Michael, but forecasters say our area is not under the Tropical Storm watches or warnings like counties further south.

Right now, Elberton, Abbeville, and Greenwood are under a tropical storm warning as Michael makes its way from the Gulf through Georgia this afternoon.

However, Greenville Spartanburg Meteorologist Justin Lane says Stephens County should avoid the worst of it.

“Right now, based on current information we are not expecting any watches or warnings to be issued for Stephens County,” Lane said Wednesday morning. “We are expecting 2-3 inches of rain between now and the next 36 hours over Stephens County. So, that’s not expected to be enough to cause any flooding issues.”

Lane said the only concern would be if the system stalled over our area and dumped more rain than expected.

But the time Michael reaches North Georgia, it is expected to move through quickly.

So even though we are not expected to get the heavy rainfall as our neighbors to our south, we could still see some significant wind gusts, according to Lane.

“Winds will be gusty, especially late tonight through at least the first half of tomorrow, but we’re not expecting anything out of the ordinary. 20-30mph winds are what we’re expecting,” he said.

And as always, stay with 93-1FM and AM630 WNEG for the latest weather conditions and updates.