We've been through ice and snow before, and know that we need to stock up, hunker down, and stay warm until things warm up. But, with the school districts not releasing the students until way after the fact, then everyone leaving all at once, we had a nightmare scenario on our hands. Our traffic is awful even on sunny days - add some ice and snow to that, plus worry and panic, and of course, we're going to shut down. Things could have been much different if the government had played it safe and closed the schools and offices, and if businesses had just run on skeleton crews or closed on Tuesday.
I hope my city has learned a lesson from this. When you have children stranded overnight on school buses, it's time to admit that you messed up in a big way. When your salt and gravel trucks start treating an hour before the snow/ice starts, then get stuck on the interstate, you messed up in a big way. And before people say that folks could have chosen to stay home from work that day, not everyone has the option of taking paid days off. Georgia is a right to work state, and employers can and will fire you for anything they want to, as long as it isn't illegal. These residents followed what the leaders told them - and the leaders were very wrong.
Mini rant this morning, as I wait for my neighborhood to defrost. The ice on the roads, especially the hills, is terrible!
rayer: