Tropical Storm Debby Slows Down Supply Chain in Southeastern US
A day after making landfall in Florida as a Category 1 hurricane, Tropical Storm Debby has brought torrential rainfall and flooding to the southeastern U.S., potentially bringing about supply chain delays throughout various states.
The deadly storm, which has killed as many as five people across Florida and Georgia, could cause flash flooding of up to 30 inches in some areas, according to a Tuesday morning advisory from the National Weather Service.
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Georgia’s Port of Savannah stopped accepting cargo at 2 p.m. Monday before closing an hour later. The port remains closed on Tuesday and is expected to reopen Wednesday morning.
The state’s other major gateway, the Port of Brunswick, didn’t receive an inbound vessel Monday and will remain closed Tuesday.
The South Carolina Ports Authority said it would operate normal gate hours on Tuesday, with container terminals at the Port of Charleston opening at 5 a.m. The U.S. Coast Guard on Sunday advised vessels to finalize plans to leave the Port of Charleston prior to Debby’s arrival.
In Florida, the Port of Jacksonville (JAXPORT) was closed to incoming vessel traffic starting Monday afternoon into Tuesday, but the port’s main gates are open and landside cargo operations continue.
Several other ports on Florida’s Gulf Coast were closed temporarily, including Port Tampa Bay and Port St. Petersburg, with both resuming vessel operations Tuesday. Port Tampa Bay had closed its waterways Saturday as it prepared for the storm’s arrival.
On land, three post offices across Florida were temporarily closed due to disruptions from Debby, with operations temporarily moved to an nearby location. The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has not reported any closures in Georgia and South Carolina.
But the agency does expect some impacts, saying that the tropical storm is impacting the processing, transportation and delivery of mail and packages.
“Please allow additional time for final delivery of your item,” the USPS said in a service alert.
FedEx has closed one FedEx Office location in Charleston, and its FedEx Freight trucking division listed 123 zip codes across South Carolina and Georgia that currently have no service. More than 2,090 zip codes across Florida, South Carolina and Georgia have limited service for FedEx’s ground operation.
“Contingency plans have been activated to minimize impacts, but potential delays and disruptions can be expected for inbound and outbound shipments in the affected region,” FedEx said.
Class I railroads in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. have been monitoring the storm, with both Norfolk Southern and CSX saying they have remained operational under normal hours.
Customers with shipments moving through the southeast and mid-Atlantic should prepare for delays, Norfolk Southern said, while CSX said minor delays were expected for traffic beginning and ending in the southeast.
CSX said in an advisory it implemented precautionary measures to protect employees, rail traffic and infrastructure, including repositioning assets and identifying alternative routings that may be required for some traffic. Similarly, Norfolk Southern said it was taking precautions to protect employees and track shipments as needed.
According to Resilinc, a global supply chain monitoring solution, the supply chain delays could impact the flow of over 74,000 parts and 17,500 products across various industries.
Natural disasters like Tropical Storm Debby and Hurricane Beryl, as well as tornadoes that have ravaged the Midwest this year, call for more proactive supply chain planning, backed by “essential” advanced risk data and analytics, according to John Donigian, supplier risk management strategy at Moody’s.
“For instance, by analyzing real-time data on hurricane paths and intensities, businesses can pre-emptively reroute shipments, secure alternative suppliers, and adjust inventory levels to mitigate potential disruptions,” Donigan said. “A comprehensive approach transforms potential crises into manageable challenges and opportunity, ensuring continuity and stability in an unpredictable climate landscape.”
More than 155,000 customers remained without power in Florida and Georgia on Tuesday morning, down from more than 350,000 the day before, according to PowerOutage.us and Georgia Electric Membership Corp. More than 20,000 others were without power in South Carolina early Tuesday.
President Joe Biden approved emergency declarations making federal disaster assistance available to Florida, Georgia and South Carolina.
The tropical depression also has North Carolina on guard, with the state being under a state of emergency after Governor Roy Cooper declared it in an executive order signed Monday.
Nearly 2 million people also face the threat of tornadoes: Early Tuesday, the National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for a region stretching from below Charleston to above Wilmington, N.C., lasting until 5 p.m.
The storm is supposed to move up the East Coast through the remainder of the week, reaching the Washington, D.C. area by Saturday.
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