CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — Government offices in Citrus County are scheduled to reopen for business on Friday as Tropical Storm Ian makes its way past the area.
The city of Inverness, city of Crystal River and the county's department of health will also be up and running on Friday, Citrus County Sheriff's Office said in a news release.
However, all schools within the county will reportedly remain closed until Friday. They will reopen on Monday, Oct. 3.
Deputies say the county's emergency operations center will be downgraded to monitoring at Level 3 as Hurricane Ian transitions back to a tropical storm, which means that information lines for people living in the area are set to close at 5 p.m. Thursday.
Authorities say people can still report power outages to their service providers.
"As a reminder, our non-emergency line is 352-249-2790, and you can always text or call 911 in an emergency situation," the sheriff's office said in a statement.
Below are the numbers for service providers people can call to report power outages:
- SECO Energy: 1-800-732-6141
- Withlacoochee Electric: 352-567-5133
- Duke Energy: 1-800-228-8485
Hurricane Ian transitioned back to a tropical storm Thursday morning, but will likely become a hurricane again Thursday evening as it emerges over the Atlantic. It has caused catastrophic storm surge, winds and flooding over the Florida peninsula since making landfall, the National Hurricane Center said.
The storm brought significant threats to areas of Tampa Bay and Florida's Gulf Coast.
To learn more about the latest Tropical Storm Ian updates in Citrus County, click here.