Atlanta stormfarers, here we go again.
A combination of two winter weather watches were issued for North Georgia, hitting late Monday and then Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service, turning to ice late Tuesday or Wednesday. The second weather watch should affect a bigger area than the first, but both affect metro Atlanta.
Gov. Nathan Deal doesn’t want to take any chances after the icy gridlock embarrassed Georgia in late January. He encouraged residents in the storm’s path to “be off the road by early evening” Monday as transportation crews prepare the roads. Deal also asked tractor-trailers, which caused mayhem during the January storm, to steer clear of I-285.
Forecasts will get more certain the closer the weather gets. The other unanswered question: whatever comes, whether government, businesses and commuters will be prepared this time.
As of Sunday night the weather service was highly confident there will be wintry rain, sleet or snow in the metro area, a meteorologist for the service said, and about 50 percent confident there will be so much that it will trigger a winter storm warning.
“Metro Atlanta is virtually guaranteed to get some snow and wintry mix,” said Channel 2 Action News Meteorologist Brad Nitz. “The details that are uncertain as of Sunday evening are how much accumulation in which areas on Tuesday.”
Suburban areas like Cobb, North Fulton and further north may have one to three inches of snow by the end of the week. Really northern counties in the mountains could have up to six inches of snow, through Thursday.
Atlantans might see nothing at all Monday evening, Nitz said, but that will change overnight. Nitz had some advice about preparing for Tuesday and beyond: “Wherever you are Monday night, you might be stuck there for a while,” he said. “Whatever’s out there it’s all going to be frozen solid Wednesday, Wednesday night into Thursday.”
The upshot the weather service predicts so far: rain, snow or sleet starting Monday night after 7 p.m. And on Tuesday or Wednesday, some ugly ice.
The first weather, starting Monday evening, may just affect north metro areas from Fulton and DeKalb on up. Basically, metro counties that have I-20 running through them, and extending northward, said Alex Gibbs, a meteorologist with the NWS.
Then comes the Tuesday-Wednesday weather. It could bring icy rain to the entire northern half of the state down to Macon.
“The second event is the one we’re probably more worried about to be honest with you,” Gibbs said — stressing that the information was still preliminary, and could change. “Possibly a quarter inch of ice across eastern Georgia…this is going to fall as freezing rain and flash freeze right away.”
Since the first drops or flakes aren’t supposed to fall until after Monday evening rush hour, metro school systems contacted Sunday either did not plan to close Monday or did not respond.
But if the weather rolls in on track, expect a different story Tuesday or Wednesday, said Channel 2 Action News Chief Meteorologist Glenn Burns.
Readers can check for storm closure updates here.
Fulton and DeKalb schools spokespeople said they’re keeping a close eye on the weather. DeKalb will make its decision by 5 a.m. Tuesday, if not sooner, said spokesman Quinn Hudson.
The Georgia Emergency Management Agency, which was slow to process the initial January storm warning, had a conference call with the National Weather Service Sunday afternoon. The state agency was preparing to step up its emergency operations center on Monday, before precipitation falls, said GEMA spokesman Ken Davis.
Davis encouraged Georgians to look up storm preparation tips at www.ready.ga.gov.
Deal gave the National Guard a warning order alerting them they could be called up this week to respond to the weather and has ordered state troopers to shift resources northward.
The governor said he would meet early Monday with emergency responders to plan the state’s response. The meeting will also include health officials and power companies over concerns that heavy downfalls of ice could knock out power. The state’s emergency command center will open at 3 p.m.
Officials with the city of Atlanta and the state Department of Transportation said they were getting equipment in place. DOT is bringing extra maintenance crews from south Georgia.
This one is a particular challenge since it might start with rain, DOT spokeswoman Natalie Dale noted. The favored pre-treatment is spraying salt brine on roads; but when a storm starts with rain, the rain washes the brine away.
The city of Atlanta plans to start pre-treating Monday at 6 p.m., spokesman Carlos Campos said. It’s got 1500 tons of gravel and salt mix on hand, and is ordering additional supplies. It plans to stand up the city emergency center at 4 p.m.
All — the weather service and the agencies — said that the information may be squishy now, but it sends a clear message: Prepare.
Staff writers Greg Bluestein and Mike Morris contributed to this article.
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