MyAJC.com
Keep up with the latest developments in the winter storm aftermath on MyAJC.com, where you can:
» Consult a map of major road closures and incidents, and find what places motorists are flagging as problem spots.
» Watch a time-lapse video of where power went out and where it was restored in Georgia.
» Watch a fun video of aerial footage of snowy Decatur taken by a flying drone.
» See updated photo galleries and videos from the ice storm.
Power
Heading into the weekend, tens of thousands of Georgians were still waiting to have electric power restored, but utilities predicted that the number will be dipping close to zero by Sunday.
Only small pockets of problems remained in metro Atlanta among Georgia Power customers, the company said late Friday. By Sunday morning, nearly all the other outages elsewhere will be repaired, Georgia Power predicted.
The last large challenge is Augusta, which late Friday still had about 73,000 customers without power.
Georgia Power provides service to about half of the state’s customers. Georgia Electric Membership Corp., a network of 40-plus utilities, covers nearly all the rest. Together, the various utilities sent thousands of crews into the field to restore power.
About 865,000 customers lost power at one point or another during the week, as the storm that pounded the region with icy rain, sleet and snow cut a swath of outages from the Alabama line to the coast.
Because there is an average of more than two people per electric customer, that means that roughly 1.8 million people were affected.
Airport
Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport has resumed full operations as the world’s busiest airport after thousands of flight cancellations earlier in the week. The facility expects Presidents’ Day holiday travelers and others to fill the airport this weekend.
Most flight cancellations from the winter storm should be complete by the weekend and operations should be relatively normal, airline and airport officials said. But with Presidents’ Day and returning Valentine’s Day travelers, in addition to passengers rebooked after the storm, flights are expected to be nearly full, according to Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines.
Officials advised travelers to allow extra time to get through the airport. The Transportation Security Administration on Friday opened all three security checkpoints in the domestic terminal and recovered from staffing issues the previous day that caused long lines. TSA also said it would have extra staffing this weekend.
Schools
Some metro Atlanta school districts welcomed back teachers and other essential personnel on Friday. But none held school. Gwinnett and Buford schools will be the first to welcome back students on Monday, which is Presidents Day. Clayton, DeKalb, Forsyth and Fulton students return Tuesday. Cobb returns Wednesday. Cherokee, Decatur and Henry systems are on winter break and won’t return to school until Feb. 24.
Roads
Atlanta’s rush hour returned Friday morning as drivers got back to their normal routines.
The Georgia Department of Transportation had very few calls of icing in the metro Atlanta area after sunrise.
“This is pretty much behind us,” said GDOT spokeswoman Karlene Barron.
All road maintenance crews brought in from other parts of the state to help out — 75 crews were working at the height of the storm on Wednesday — were sent back to their home districts. GDOT began employing just a “skeleton crew” of workers to hit problem spots in metro Atlanta.
State transportation officials were still working with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to clear roads and state routes in the eastern part of the state near Augusta that are still strewn with fallen trees and branches and blanketed with ice.
Public transportation
MARTA began operating closer to normal Friday. All MARTA bus routes were in operation and running for the first time since the snow. Paratransit service for riders with special needs also resumed, according to the transit agency.
MARTA rail service ran on a weekend schedule Friday. Saturday, MARTA buses and trains are expected to operate on their regular weekend schedules.
Cobb Community Transit and Gwinnett County Transit buses are also back on regular schedule.
— Staff Writers Michael E. Kanell, Andria Simmons, Kelly Yamanouchi and Leroy Chapman Jr. contributed to this report.
About the Author
