ATLANTA — Georgia interstates are all open, but unsafe local road conditions, closed gas stations and even barricades at some county lines may greet evacuees trying to return to their homes too soon, Georgia officials said Tuesday.

“We want everyone to be aware that access to fuel will not be guaranteed if they choose to travel south,” Homer Bryson, head of the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, said at a news conference held Tuesday. 

Frustrations were beginning to mount Tuesday, as residents grew anxious to return home and many flocked to I-75 south, causing traffic volume to more than triple. More than 1.2 million Georgians — including about 400,000 people in metro Atlanta — were also still without electricity.

But state officials asked for patience and urged motorists to stay off the roads as crews worked to clear downed trees and restore power in the wake of Tropical Storm Irma, a storm so massive that Gov. Nathan Deal placed the entire state under a state of emergency. 

Three people were killed in Georgia, including a 62-year-old Worth County man who was on his roof at the height of the storm, according to the Associated Press. Two others died in the Atlanta area, both from falling trees. 

“This is a different kind of natural disaster. We have not had one like this in the state of Georgia for a very long time,” Deal said, referring to Irma’s widespread impact. 

“Recovery is going to be a little more slow because there are so much greater territories that have be covered before anything can be back to a normal environment,” he added. 

The governor said Tuesday that he has requested public federal aid for the entire state and individual assistance for six coastal communities, which saw significant flooding.

Deal has also lifted a mandatory evacuation, which he had previously ordered for six coastal counties.

Still, the governor warned that some residents may not be able to return home just yet. Some areas, such as Glynn County, home to Brunswick, were still limiting access to just rescue and recovery personnel as of Tuesday afternoon.

“While crews work uninterrupted by traffic, every minute Glynn County limits access increases the speed of recovery exponentially,” Glynn County officials posted on social media Tuesday. “It is still not safe to be out and about in the county.

Paul Bowers, president and CEO of Georgia Power, said it would likely take “numerous days” to restore power in some parts of the state. He said about 20 percent of power had been restored as of Tuesday morning. 

“Every region in this state has been affected, and it’s going to take time for us to get back to normal in terms of power restoration,” Bowers said. “Our focus is to get our customers back online, get to normal as fast as we can.”

Nearly 180 roads were still closed at the time of the press briefing, which was down from 1,100 that were blocked on Monday, said Russell McMurry, commissioner of the state Department of Transportation. 

More than 250 traffic signals were also not working. McMurry reminded motorists to treat these intersections as four-way stops. 

“Please, stop,” he said. “We are seeing people run these signals routinely.” 

Jill Nolin covers the Georgia Statehouse for CNHI’s newspapers and websites. Reach her at jnolin@cnhi.com.