[ATLANTA’S HELL COMMUTE] Drivers Abandon Cars & Folks Slept In Stores Amid 16 Hour Traffic Jam

[The Core DJ's]

(BlackMediaScoop) people in Atlanta are waking up all over the place after yesterday’s severe winter storm! Georgia Governor Nathan Deal issued a State of Emergency after 1 to 2 inches of snow caused mass chaos. I’m sure my folks in the north are getting a good laugh out of this but ish got real in the ATL!

It was a day when a 10-mile commute could take you at least six hours. For those heading from downtown to the burbs, it was even worse. The interstates were a gridlocked mess long before the snow finished falling Tuesday. And side streets? Even worse. Some people ditched their vehicles and set out on foot. Others tried to help stranded strangers. And many persevered, moving a few inches an hour toward home.

Students got on buses to get home shortly after noon Tuesday, but treacherous road conditions coupled with gridlocked traffic made it impossible. Kimberly Willis Green, spokeswoman for Atlanta Public Schools, said she did not have an estimate on the number of children stuck in Atlanta schools overnight.

Atlanta-based Home Depot opened up 26 stores in Alabama and Georgia for stranded travelers. Spokesman Stephen Holmes said some of those who sought shelter spent time watching movies in store break rooms.

Here are some of the stories from those on the roads:

“This was, hands down, the worst day of my life,” Evan McLean of Canton said around 9 p.m. McLean got on I-285 near Perimeter Mall shortly after noon. He thought it was early enough to miss the traffic jam. He was wrong. McLean said he thought he’d try back roads and get off the interstate. Again, not a great idea. “I was literally stranded on Canton Road for two and a half hours without moving an inch.”
…
Both Alicia Jones and her 2-year-old daughter were in tears late Tuesday while trying to reach their south Fulton County home off Langford Parkway. “We’ve been on the same road for seven hours,” Jones said around 9:30 p.m. “People are stalling, no one has gas, trucks are jack-knifed.” Jones, who is eight months pregnant, said she felt contractions and was trying to stay calm.
…
“It’s been kinda crazy,” Andrea Duke said. “I have been in the car for eight hours.” Duke left work in Kennesaw and headed toward her Vinings apartment, but hours later, was still driving. A few miles from home, she remembered what was in her trunk: cat litter purchased the night before. She used it help other drivers on South Cobb Drive.

A Facebook page called “SnowedOutAtlanta” served as an outlet for stranded commuters and those wanting to help. “Unfortunately, many are stranded where there is NO exit, NO help — my husband being one — please keep all those folks in your prayers,” one person posted.
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Kyle Gibson, an insurance agent, and his cousin traveled from Gwinnett County to Cobb County for an exam Tuesday morning. It took them more than eight hours to get back to the office. “At one point, around 6:45, 285 was like a bumper pool table with abandoned cars and stuck 18-wheelers stopping up the highway,” Gibson said. “It was crazy!”
…
It took Jasmine Hoffman eight hours to get from Druid Hills to her home in north Fulton County. And she had to make half of that commute after picking up her 3-month-old twins from daycare. “I had to feed them twice while in the car,” Hoffman said. “My babies were not happy campers and I thought we were going to be stranded on Old Milton Parkway.”

Were any of you affected? My girlfriend left work at 1:45pm…she was still on the road at 8pm trying to get to her child’s school…a drive that usually takes a few minutes…a mess!

Let’s keep ATL in our prayers…hundreds of people are still stranded this morning

[Shadow]

Yep!!!

Believe it or not we got hit with the Alabama version of the same winter storm which they originally reported that we would only get a slight dusting of flurries if anything.

Flurries my ass. Within an hour, the entire city and surrounding areas where I live were covered in snow and creating road hazards and stranded motorists lasting two days.

The only thing that saved me was the fact that I was off work for the last two days and didn't have to get out.

Thank God for small blessings