‘Sick to my stomach:’ Waycross residents dealing with Helene damage, left without power

WAYCROSS, Ga. — Hurricane Helene left its mark in Waycross, GA. The damage was so extensive, it left thousands of people without power.

The storm’s powerful winds tossed traffic lights onto the ground and knocked over hundreds of trees in Waycross and throughout southeast Georgia.

Locals told Action News Jax Annette Gutierrez they are feeling...

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“Overwhelmed,” Waycross resident Brent Basham. “I’ve been through some major tornados in Texas, but this right here topped it.”

And tragically, Blackshear firefighter Leon Davis was killed during the storm. Officials say a tree fell on top of him.

The storm’s lingering impact was felt everywhere in this town the day after it swept through the area.

“We took a real good hit this time,” Waycross City Manager City Manager Ulysses Rayford said.

Rayford says nearly the entire city is without power.

Around noon, the Georgia Power Outage map shows 22,000 residents of the 24,000 in Waycross and Ware County are without power.

“Hopefully, the power gets back on in the next 2-3 days,” Rayford said. “But I will say, we’ve been here before, and it might be a week, so just asking everybody to be patient.”

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Gutierrez spoke with Brent Basham around midnight on Friday. He moved here from Texas about three weeks ago and Helene gave him a harsh welcome.

“Sort of sick to my stomach,” Basham said.

Around midnight, a pine tree slammed onto the bed of his truck, demolishing it. And then two hours later, another tree branch went right through his roof impaling the beds in his room.

“It stabbed into the mattress,” Basham said. “If my daughter-in-law would have been on that side of the bed, it basically would have took the lower half of her off.”

Basham said luckily no one got hurt. He’s trying to stay positive.

“My house can be fixed, my truck can be replaced,” Basham said.

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Waycross city officials have issued a safety curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

The city’s mayor and Georgia’s governor both declared a state of emergency, so they could get resources and assistance to people here.

Red Cross volunteers are heading this way, and the city is working to bring water pallets for those who need it.

About 10 food trucks will be helping feed people across the city as well.

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