As the day of remembrance approached on Monday, Florida and south Georgia’s Memorial Day festivities were threatened by Tropical Storm Beryl. Due to the storm, Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown cancelled all Memorial Day ceremonies. CNN affiliate WTLV reported an event at Veteran’s Cemetery in nearby St. Augustine was also cancelled. The Jacksonville Transportation Authority suspended all bus routes to area beaches. All power across the region was knocked out by Beryl’s powerful winds. Roughly 21,000 customers were without electricity in Florida and 3,500 in Georgia, reports say.
Beryl’s storm conditions were forecast for areas of the Atlantic coast from northeastern Florida, to Edisto Beach, South Carolina. A Flagler County, Florida resident, Jimmy Poole, told CNN affiliate Central Florida News 13, “I’ve been through a couple, but thank God, we made it through. I know we’ve got to board the windows and be careful in the water, and I know the news is going to tell us what to do.” The tropical storm comes just ahead of the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season, which begins June 1 and runs through November 30.
