DOT: Stay off roads Saturday

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By Marcus K. Garner, Mashaun D. Simon and Mike Morris

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Metro Atlantans need to stay off the roads Saturday morning as much as possible.

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Phil Skinner, AJC A couple walks in downtown Atlanta early Friday afternoon.

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John Spink, AJC Delta Air Lines has canceled 400 flights out of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

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Georgia Department of Transportation workers Valerie Goodwin (left) and Luke Carman prepare a truck full of pea-size gravel mixed with salt to spread on snow-covered roads.

John Spink, AJC Georgia Department of Transportation workers Valerie Goodwin (left) and Luke Carman prepare a truck full of pea-size gravel mixed with salt to spread on snow-covered roads.

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Icy road conditions are expected for in the morning, Karlene Barron with the Georgia Department of Transportation, told the AJC.

"Our crews will definitely be battling in the morning," she said. "Hopefully temperatures will rise significantly. That will helps us."

DOT crews have been "literally watching temperatures drop," Barron said.

Forecasters with the National Weather Service estimate anywhere between 2 and 4 inches of snow have fallen in the metro area since it began around 1:30 p.m. Friday. Temperatures are expected to hover around freezing overnight.

Early Friday forecasters were not expecting more than 2 inches to accumulate. By 6 p.m. those expectations had changed.

Friday afternoon's heavy snowfall has lightened, Mike Leary, NWS meteorologist, told the AJC.

"We are just about done," he said. "We don't expect much more accumulation and the snowfall should come to an end around 5 a.m. Nothing is expected for Saturday."

Icy and slippery road conditions caused dozens of accidents on metro area interstates in Cobb, Fulton, Clayton, DeKalb and Gwinnett.However, as of 9 p.m. Friday, none of the incidents had resulted in any serious or fatal injuries.

Wet and heavy snow has brought down power lines throughout the area, Jeff Wilson, Georgia Power spokesman, told the AJC. Roughly 4,300 customers, 2,500 in the Jonesboro area were without power around 9 p.m. Friday.

About 2,400 customers are also without power, of those, approximately 1,500 are located in metro Atlanta.

There is no estimated time as to when all Georgia Power or EMC customers will have their power back on.

Friday's forecast prompted numerous school systems -- including Fulton, Gwinnett and Clayton -- to cancel Saturday activities. Georgia State University will open at noon.

Also, Friday evening, The City of Atlanta and Department of Public Works began spreading a mixture of sand and salt over all bridges and overpasses and segments of streets with steep grades as a precaution.

Saturday temperatures are expected to warm up -- expected in the 40s throughout the day-- melting Friday's snow. Just a little snow fall -- nothing to be excited about, Leary said -- is expected for Sunday night into Monday morning.

--AJC staffer, Pat Fox, contributed to this report.