Thirty Georgia Power trucks line the highway along Interstate 20 at Washington Road, waiting for the arrival of more trucks. Over 400 linemen from Georgia Power are on their way to North Carolina to assist in the wake of the hurricane. Jim Blaylock/Staff

Altogether, about 250 Georgia power workers and 200 Bell South workers from Georgia will fan out to help repair the damage.

Web-posted Sept. 6, 1996

 Fran at-a-glance
 Bob Smith's Hurricane Tracker
 Other Hurricane stories

By Robert Pavey
Staff Writer

Hurricane Fran left a mess behind when it tore through the Eastern Seaboard, and Augusta residents are helping to clean it up - even though it is in someone else's back yard.

Utility crews and relief workers from the CSRA are already on their way to North Carolina to repair power and telephone lines, and volunteer hands to clean up the mess and feed hurricane victims could follow soon, executives said Friday.

About 15 Bell South workers from Augusta were scheduled to leave this morning tr for Raleigh, N.C., taking hundreds of generators with them, said district manager Merle Temple. More than 20 Georgia Power workers already hit the road Friday morning, said Rick Kimble, a spokesman for the power company.

``We'll go wherever we're needed,'' Mr. Kimble said. ``These are compact crews, and they carry everything they need. They just point us in the right direction and we're self-sufficient.''

Hundreds of thousands of Bell South and Carolina Power & Light customers lost utilities in the hurricane, as wires were lashed by high winds or brought down by falling trees. Altogether, about 250 Georgia power workers and 200 Bell South workers from Georgia will fan out to help repair the damage.

``We'll probably be up there quite a while,'' Mr. Temple said. ``We know - we've been through this many times before.''

Meanwhile, about five American Red Cross workers in the city are on alert in case their skills are needed in the clean-up, said Bill Tomlinson, director of emergency services for the Augusta chapter. And Golden Harvest Food Bank will be taking food to North Carolina in about a week, said executive director Michael Firmin.

``The real task of feeding people is going to happen in the weeks to come,'' Mr. Firmin said. ``The storm is over, but our collection is just beginning.''

The food drive will include a collection at Sego Middle School, he said.

Red Cross workers with mental-health training, the ability to operate a ham radio and training in feeding and clothing masses of people may be sent to the storm-ravaged area, Mr. Tomlinson said.

``We probably won't move up for another 48 hours,'' he said Friday. ``We'll wait until we get word from national headquarters.''