Power, gas on the way

Evacuees in Florida begin the uncertain trek home

Virtually all East Coast customers of the state’s biggest provider of power should have power restored by Sunday, and western customers will be fully up and running a few days later, Florida Power & Light said Tuesday.

Company spokesman Rob Gould said a preliminary assessment of Hurricane Irma’s devastation indicated damage to the electrical infrastructure was not as extensive as expected. That included the western coast, which took a direct hit.

“What we’re seeing is encouraging, particularly on the west coast where our main transmission structures have not come down,” said Gould, whose company provides service to about half the state’s 10.5 million power accounts.

Gov. Rick Scott said power had been restored to about

1 million homes and businesses by Tuesday morning.

Irma, which smashed into Florida on Sunday as a Category 4 hurricane with 130-mph winds, weakened to a posttropical cyclone. Still, there were problems. More than

500,000 people evacuated Georgia’s coastal communities, some of which saw storm surge running through streets. Dozens of roads were closed because of flooding in and around Charleston, S.C. In Florida, Jacksonville also saw heavy flooding.

Six deaths in Florida have been blamed on Irma, along with three in Georgia and one in South Carolina. At least 35 people were killed in the Caribbean last week.

Also Tuesday:

The cruise industry was returning to life. Royal Caribbean and Carnival planned to resume sailings out of Fort Lauderdale’s Port Everglades.

In Central Florida, Walt Disney World reopened in Orlando — and the Magic Kingdom appeared untouched.