Memories of last storm spur preparations for this one
Staff writers Ernie Suggs, Ariel Hart, Shannon McCaffrey, Marcus Garner, Steve Visser, Jeremy Redmon and Jaime Sarrio contributed to this article.
No. Absolutely not. No freaking way. Not this time.
That was the feeling around metro Atlanta Tuesday, as people scrambled to prepare for an ice storm that forecasters say could be historic. Everyone seemed to realize that, when faced with potentially crippling weather, it’s OK to overreact a bit. It’s OK to go from store to store gathering supplies.
“I’m not taking any chances at all,” said Kim Jones, 31, while loading up on flashlights, batteries and other storm supplies at Edgewood Plaza in Atlanta. She had already stocked up on sandwich supplies and other foods. “I’m worried my power is going to go out. You can talk about overreact and under-react, but I think the last storm showed me that this can be dangerous.”
Kenny Kirby was hunting for an extension cord for his space heater at Home Depot. It may prove unnecessary, said the McDonough resident, but now he feels his family is ready for the worst.
Anthony Castro was loading starter logs and four bags of firewood into the trunk of his car at the Publix on Highway 92 in Woodstock.
During last month’s SnowJam, his girlfriend spent hours stuck in traffic as she tried to drive home from work in Alpharetta. She gave up, parked her car and had Castro pick her up. They spent four more hours in gridlock, finally arriving in Woodstock just before 2 a.m.
“I’m going to make sure I’m comfortable,” said Castro, a database administrator who moved to Georgia after weathering several hurricanes in south Florida. He bought bottled water, powdered milk, chicken and ground beef. He had a whole menu planned for the rest of the week: sloppy joe sandwiches, pasta dishes, tacos, fajitas.
For many people, the pain of the tumultuous Jan. 28 storm was still fresh. Some people were still kicking themselves over the decisions they made that day.
Adaya Jackson, 15, was stuck at Marietta High School. Her father attempted a rescue, but his car got stuck in their hilly neighborhood, forcing him to walk back home.
“I was worried,” said her mother, Jacqueline Lott Jackson. “As parents we should have gone and gotten her earlier.”
This time, they’ll stay home.
Brian Hatcher, discipleship pastor at First Baptist Church Atlanta in Dunwoody, said said he had no regrets, “none at all,” about the church cancelling activities Tuesday even before the worst weather hit. During the last storm, he said, some staff members were stuck in their cars overnight and another ended up sharing a hotel room with a stranger for 48 hours.
“It’s in an effort to protect the congregation,” he said, of the decision to close well ahead of the ice onset. Outside the window of his home in Sugar Hill, a “wintry mix” was already falling Tuesday afternoon. “I’m interested to see what happens,” he said.
Meanwhile, in Edgewood, Joe Lowe was picking up plumbing supplies at the Lowes to renovate his nieces’ bathroom.
Numerous people were checking out books at the East Cobb library, preparing to hole up with a good read. Two teenage brothers, John and Brett Otterlee, were ordered there by their father, who was tired of their binges on TV and video games.
“Someone told me you don’t need electricity for a book,” Brett said, a bit of sarcasm in his voice.
Riding the train home Tuesday afternoon, Randy Speer was pretty confident that he and metro Atlanta were going to be OK. At about 12:30 p.m., the 41-year-old state education worker looked out at a highway that was moving smoothly.
He had watched the press conference in which state and Atlanta officials detailed their plans, and was reassured. He had picked up some chips and cereal and microwave meals. Even if he lost power, he didn’t expect it to last long, because he had heard that the electric company was bringing in extra crews.
“I’m just going to hibernate for a day or two,” he said.
