Tropical Storm Debby moved out into the Atlantic off the coast of Georgia yesterday — but people living in the eastern part of the state are not finished with it.

Why it matters: Sun is in the forecast for metro Atlanta today, but our friends in southeastern Georgia remain on alert this week as the deadly storm prepares to make landfall once again.

State of play: Debby made a slow trek yesterday out of Georgia and over the Atlantic. From there, forecasts say, the storm will regroup and regain some strength before arriving on the shore of South Carolina tomorrow, the National Weather Service said.

• There's less certainty about what could happen next. Coastal South Carolina could see continued rainfall and in some areas catastrophic flooding.
• Although the storm's biggest threats have moved north, flooding will remain a risk in some parts of Georgia this week, per the Savannah Morning News.

Meanwhile, a clearer picture is emerging of the storm's destruction so far.

• In Moultrie, Georgia, a 19-year-old died when a tree fell on his porch, officials told the AJC. In Florida, the storm was responsible for at least four deaths, CBS reported.
• In Savannah, there were reports of people trapped in homes due to floodwater. More than a dozen roads were flooded.

By the numbers: James C. Stallings, the director of the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, said at a news conference yesterday morning that 18 water treatment facilities along the coast were running with backup generators to prevent service disruptions.

• More than 300 Georgia National Guard members were in position to assist if needed, Adjutant General Dwayne Wilson said.

The big picture: Some of the biggest flood events in the Southeastern United States have come in the past two decades, owing to slow-moving tropical storms and hurricanes, such as Matthew in 2016 and Florence in 2018, Axios' Andrew Freedman reports.

• Coastal population growth has also put more people in harm's way, including in Georgia.

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Billionaire Mike Bloomberg announced yesterday that his organization is donating $600 million to four historically Black medical schools, including Morehouse School of Medicine.

Why it matters: The four institutions are responsible for graduating roughly half of all Black doctors in the country, but are "significantly underfunded" due to discriminatory practices and less federal and state support, Bloomberg Philanthropies said in a press release.

Zoom in: Morehouse School of Medicine, Howard University College of Medicine and Meharry Medical College will each receive a $175 million donation.

• Charles R. Drew University of Medicine & Science will receive $75 million.
• The organization also announced an additional $5 million in seed funding to help create the Xavier Ochsner College of Medicine in New Orleans.

What they're saying: "We have much more to do to build a country where every person, regardless of race, has equal access to quality health care," Bloomberg said in a statement, noting that "addressing health disparities and underrepresentation in the medical field are critical challenges."

Flashback: Bloomberg donated $100 million to the same four medical schools in 2020.

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MARTA's expansion to the Atlantic Ocean is going exactly to plan.

Why it matters: Reef habitats are beginning to develop on decommissioned rail cars that the transit agency gave to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and dumped off the coast of Savannah.

Zoom in: DNR divers recently made their first visit to the railcars and saw signs of corals, sponges, and other "encrusting organisms" taking hold now, MARTA said in a statement.

The intrigue: "You'll notice one of the railcar roofs has collapsed, which is typical," said Cameron Brinton, a DNR marine biologist.

• "[We'll] see more changes to the railcars over time as they become part of the essential marine habitat for sea creatures, including popular sport fish and endangered sea turtles."

Zoom out: Other items added to the ocean floor over the past 50 years include "M-60 battle tanks, barges, tugboats, New York City subway cars, and other manmade structures."

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📔 Classes are back in session in Gwinnett County schools, but the district is still not offering the AP African American Studies course to students. (AJC)

🇵🇸 Six UGA students who were banned from campus in the spring over pro-Palestinian protests will remain suspended through the fall semester. (AJC)

🍄 Foraging for edible mushrooms in Georgia can be tricky. Here's a beginner's guide on how to embark on this hobby. (Atlanta)

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