State road crews are hoping to finish clearing snow and ice from the Atlanta area’s interstates Wednesday and move to secondary routes, the Georgia Emergency Management Agency confirmed.
The weather is supposed to be sunny Wednesday, so that could help melt away some of the problems, GEMA spokeswoman Crystal Paulk-Buchanan said.
“The action taken on the interstates Tuesday had a good impact, but [the state Department of Transportation]is still seeing and treating slick spots,” Paulk-Buchanan said. “Their primary focus was interstates. Once they can get those open, they will move to the secondary routes.”
Paulk-Buchanan gave The Atlanta Journal-Constitution updates on several other related issues Wednesday:
Weather: Freezing temperatures are expected Wednesday along with possible wind gusts of up to 25 mph.
“That is good because it may help dry out the roads,” Paulk-Buchanan said of the wind. “That is bad because gusts could snap trees and impact power. It is supposed to be sunny much of the day, and that will provide a solar effect which will help dry roads and other surfaces. Yesterday, there were just clouds all day, so there wasn’t as much melting as we might have hoped or drying as we might have hoped.”
MARTA: MARTA trains are running. Decisions about bus operations will come later, Paulk-Buchanan said.
Government: State government offices are open Wednesday. Some local government offices may be opening two to four hours later than normal Wednesday, depending on road conditions.
“We do encourage those who are going to work today to drive slowly and if possible wait until the sun gets out a little later in the morning so roads become more passable,” Paulk-Buchanan said Wednesday.
Schools: Most school districts in the Atlanta area remained closed Wednesday.
Utilities: “There are a limited number of power outages, and that really remains the bright spot of this event,” Paulk-Buchanan said.
Meanwhile, the state has been using the Georgia National Guard in some limited ways. For example, Guardsmen have assisted law enforcement officials who have gotten stuck in the snow in North Georgia’s Gordon and Murray counties. Driving Humvees, Guardsmen transported emergency room workers through the snow and ice from their Atlanta-area homes to Grady Memorial Hospital on Monday.
They also drove some officials to Gov. Nathan Deal’s inauguration at the state Capitol on Monday. And on Tuesday, Guardsmen considered using one of their helicopters to help state officials assess road conditions.
“Yesterday's flights were scrubbed due to weather,” Maj. John Alderman IV, a spokesman for the National Guard, said in an e-mail. “It's possible that the aerial reconnaissance will happen now that the weather is cooperating.”
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