Waffle House never closes. But ahead of Hurricane Michael, this one in Florida did

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. – A Panama City Beach Waffle House has pulled out the storm shutters and locked its doors ahead of Hurricane Michael.

Ryan Kruger, a reporter for Atlanta television station WXIA, was in the Florida beach town covering the storm and noticed something rarely seen: A closed sign on a Waffle House.

“I don’t know if I’ve seen that in my entire life,” Kruger said.

The restaurant on Highway 30-A, just across from the beach, was locked as hurricane shutters covered the store with a simple ‘closed’ sign on the door, he reported.

“The restaurant that never closes is officially closed,” Kruger said.

Pat Warner with Waffle House told USA TODAY that 18 locations were closed as of Wednesday morning along the panhandle from Panama City to Destin. 

"They are all under evacuation orders and our people have evacuated," Warner said over email. "We will be there right after the storm to re-open."

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The 24-hour restaurant chain is known for more than a fast breakfast — it often remains open during natural disasters, providing food and resources to first responders.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency even monitors a "Waffle House Index," a color-coded indicator of what restaurants are open, closed or offering a limited menu, to gauge how well an area will recover from a hurricane, tornado or other hazard. 

"The Waffle House test just doesn't tell us how quickly a business might rebound — it also tells how the larger community is faring," said a FEMA blog post from 2011, when Craig Fugate was administrator under former President Obama.

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Contributing: USA TODAY's Sean Rossman and Ashley May