Live Tropical Storm Nicole updates: Power outages surge; Tallahassee sees 50 mph gust

Nicole made landfall near Vero Beach Thursday morning. The storm brings strong winds, heavy rainfall and storm surge threats to much of the state. As Tropical Storm Nicole moves across Florida, stay tuned to this page for updates.

 6 p.m. | City power crews will be working throug the night on outages

With the worst of Tropical Storm Nicole moving through the Tallahassee area, the city’s utility crews are planning on working through the night to restore scattered power outages.

As of 6 p.m., there were 22 reported outages affecting roughly 290 utility customers.

National Weather Service officials say the strongest winds and heaviest rains are expected to lash the capital city until 10 p.m. before Nicole continues its trudge north into Georgia.

City spokeswoman Alison Faris said utility crews were prepared to continue addressing outages as they happen.

“Since this morning, crews have restored power to more than 15,000 customers,” Faris said in a text message. “Additional city line crews began their shift at 4 p.m. with plans to continue restorations through the evening.”

4 p.m. | Power outages stacking up with thousands currently in the dark

We are now in what forecasters say will be the peak period of wind and rain for Tallahassee. And the power outages are stacking up.

As of 4 p.m., peak wind gusts of 47 mph were reported in Southwood and at Desoto Trails in North Tallahassee. There are 48 power outages with more than 5,000 customers in the dark. The vast majority are from an outage on Roberts Avenue. By 4:45 p.m.

To see the latest outages, check out the city's outage map.

3 p.m. | Storm surge predicted for coast, trees down in Tallahassee

Along the Big Bend Coast, the main concern for meteorologists is a storm surge that is anticipated to reach as high as 5 feet while Tropical Storm Nicole moves north out of the region early Friday morning.

But for people who live in St. Marks, the storm’s blustery winds signal much-needed rain without much worry about flooding.

Negative tide before the surge: Tropical Storm Nicole coming, but no worries in Wakulla

After making landfall early Thursday morning as a Category 1 hurricane, Nicole swept through the state of Florida, bringing strong wind gusts and heavy rain.

Tallahassee utility crews were racing around town and quickly restoring power to customers who were knocked off the grid. Crews removed trees from lines and restored power to almost ten thousand customers even before the brunt of the winds arrived. By 3 p.m., the city was seeing regular gusts in the mid-30 mph range. Residents in north Tallahassee reported the sound of at least two transformers blowing.

More: See Tallahassee and Leon County power outage map as Tropical Storm Nicole impacts Florida

11:30 a.m. | When will Tallahassee see the worst of it?

The first of Nicole's rain bands have arrived in Tallahassee, but the city is likely to see the heaviest bout of weather between 3 and 7 p.m.

What passes for the wide center of the storm, may cross or near Florida's capital city at about 8 or 9 p.m.

How big is Nicole? Hurricane Nicole is a very large storm: At 970 miles wide, it's bigger than Texas

But the stronger rain bands and winds, including tropical storm-force gusts, will come well ahead of the center, according to Ryan Truchelut, the WeatherTiger meteorologist, who provides forecasts for the Tallahassee Democrat.

Forecasters expect sustained winds of 25 and 35 mph with the potential for gusts of 45 to 50 mph. A much need 2 to 4 inches of rain is also in the forecast.

For the absolute latest on the storm, tune in to WeatherTiger's live forecast at 1 p.m. on our Facebook page.

11 a.m. | City already battling power outages

As the winds pick up, city crews are already battling scattered power outages.

A little after 9 a.m., a tree fell on power lines in east Tallahassee near Park Ave. and Victory Garden Drive.

The outage a little after 9 a.m.  took about 3,000 customers off the grid. By 10 a.m., though, crews had powered up the vast majority of homes. About 800 customers are still in the dark as crews remove the tree.

A later outage on Lake Bradford road affecting 558 customers was quickly restored after a tree fell on a line.

A little after 12:30 p.m., Crews responded to a power outage affecting 2021 customers in west Tallahassee due to a tree on the line at W. Pensacola and Mabry Streets. They restored the outage minutes later.

Crews will respond to outages immediately as long as winds aren't blowing to hard and they can work safely.

City of Tallahassee utilities is preparing for more power outages by beefing up its lineman ranks with reinforcements from Louisiana.

For the latest outages, check the Tallahassee outage map at https://outagemap.talgov.com/

10 a.m. | Two to 4 inches of rain, weaker winds in Tallahassee forecast

Tropical Storm Nicole could pack lower winds than previously expected as it makes its way through the Big Bend at about midday.

In the National Weather Service’s 4 a.m. update, meteorologists predicted wind speeds for the Tallahassee area could decrease to between 25 and 35 mph with the potential for gusts of 45 to 50 mph.

State blog: Hurricane Nicole: The latest updates as Florida braces and prepares for another storm

The predicted track for Nicole remains roughly the same after it made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane at about 4 a.m. near Vero Beach Thursday morning.

More than 200,000 homes and businesses across Florida's central east coast were without power Thursday as then Hurricane Nicole, downgraded to a tropical storm, slammed the region with powerful winds and heavy rain.

From USA TODAY: Nicole batters Florida as it moves inland, downgraded to a tropical storm: Live updates

The storm was centered about 30 miles southwest of Orlando at 7 a.m. local time. Nicole was moving west-northwest at 14 mph, and forecasters predicted a turn toward the north.

Throughout the day it will move over the Florida Peninsula and meteorologists are predicting tropical storm conditions to last throughout Friday morning.

Hurricane tracker and model mixer: Tropical Storm Nicole: See spaghetti models, path and storm activity for Florida

In the Tallahassee area, between 2 and 4 inches of rain are expected along with the potential for blustery winds, downed trees and scattered power outages.

A tropical storm warning extends from the Gulf Coast into South Georgia where Nicole is forecast to move north as it weakens Friday.

Eric Bunker, a meteorologist with the NWS Tallahassee office, said Nicole’s weather bands were moving into the area but the worst conditions in Tallahassee would likely be around 7 to 9 p.m.

“We’re starting to see some of those outer rains showers from the storm starting to come into Leon County,” Bunker said at about 10 a.m. “Conditions are going to continue to deteriorate throughout the day.”

That will mean tropical storm force winds and possible gusts up to 50 mph in some areas and a dose of much needed rain. Because of the persistent dry period, however, flooding is not as big of a concern.

“We could still see some power outages and down trees across town,” Bunker said. “The rainfall is needed in our area, so overall were not expecting flash flooding.”

Along the coast, storm surge warnings are in place from the Ochlockonee River to Suwannee River where 3 to 5 feet of storm surge is likely.

Leon County has partially activated the Emergency Operations Center to monitor the storm, while City of Tallahassee utilities is preparing for any power outages by beefing up its lineman ranks with reinforcements from Louisiana. The school district and local universities canceled Thursday classes after the county was placed under a Tropical Storm Warning.

Wednesday Tallahassee storm updates: Friday's Veterans Day parade in Tallahassee 'moving forward'

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Live updates from path of Tropical Storm Nicole for Tallahassee, N. Florida