Atlantapocalypse

Meanwhile, here is Chi-beria, (Chicago) it's been what, 4 - 5 days of sub zero temps?

The roads are like washboards with all the frost heaves. I can't wait till it all thaws and the giant pot holes all open up.
 
My city got whacked too, and for the exact same reasons as Atlanta (forecasts said the snow was going to miss the city, no preparations were made, and by the time schools and businesses closed and sent everyone out onto the roads at the same time, those roads were already freezing over into slick ramps of icy death).
 
a_unique_person said:
Apparently a large part of the problem was a thick coating of ice.
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Or a thin one. That's all it takes, especially with road surfaces not optimized for snow/ice, lack of equipment to pre-treat/treat the roads, and motorists who don't have much experience driving in those conditions.

But it seems that the main failure in Atlanta was by the government officials who gambled that there wouldn't be a problem, and were entirely unprepared when there was.
 
But it seems that the main failure in Atlanta was by the government officials who gambled that there wouldn't be a problem, and were entirely unprepared when there was.
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Aw, c'mon. That even happens here in Colorado. A few years ago we had a horrific snow storm that apparently caught everyone above the age of 7 by surprise (RocketBoy1.0 KNEW we'd have a snow day despite the forecasts). Since then teh weather forecasts, weather alerts and municipal responses have been much more aggressive, almost to the boy crying wolf stage.
 
What did Atlanta get, like 3 inches of snow? I'm guessing there mustn't be hardly any plows or salt trucks- they must have gotten caught completely offguard. But still, it's hard for me to imagine an entire city becoming "paralyzed" due to a couple inches of snow. I even hear that kids had to stay overnight at school. Seriously??

We got 14 inches last Tuesday thru Tues night with drifts upward of 2 feet and I didn't even get off morning classes the next day. It was also cold as hell, too- barely got out of the single digits all day. Hardly any of it's gone yet as I speak, other than from highways and major roads.

Not to mention, it'll be in the lower to mid 60's by the time the weekend rolls around down in Joejuh.

Crybabies :p
 
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911KookDetector said:
What did Atlanta get, like 3 inches of snow? I'm guessing there mustn't be hardly any plows or salt trucks- they must have gotten caught completely offguard. But still, it's hard for me to imagine an entire city becoming "paralyzed" due to a couple inches of snow. I even hear that kids had to stay overnight at school. Seriously??

We got 14 inches last Tuesday thru Tues night with drifts upward of 2 feet and I didn't even get off morning classes the next day. It was also cold as hell, too- barely got out of the single digits all day. Hardly any of it's gone yet as I speak, other than from highways and major roads.

Not to mention, it'll be in the lower to mid 60's by the time the weekend rolls around down in Joejuh.

Crybabies :p
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Snow fell. Then it warmed slightly, then it all froze. The roads were all covered in ICE. And no Road clearing equipment, add that to people who aren't used to such conditions, and they ALL hit the highways at the same time...
 
911KookDetector said:
What did Atlanta get, like 3 inches of snow? I'm guessing there mustn't be hardly any plows or salt trucks- they must have gotten caught completely offguard. But still, it's hard for me to imagine an entire city becoming "paralyzed" due to a couple inches of snow. I even hear that kids had to stay overnight at school. Seriously??

We got 14 inches last Tuesday thru Tues night with drifts upward of 2 feet and I didn't even get off morning classes the next day. It was also cold as hell, too- barely got out of the single digits all day. Hardly any of it's gone yet as I speak, other than from highways and major roads.

Not to mention, it'll be on the lower to mid 60's by the time the weekend rolls around down in Joejuh.

Crybabies :p
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It's a lot easier to drive on 14 inches of snow than it is to drive on ice.
 
Skeptic Ginger said:
Meanwhile the record heatwave in Australia continues and the country threatens to burn up altogether.

:duck:
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From time to time I feel compelled to point out a fact of life (and science): Warm air (with or without moisture) rises. It is generally replaced by cooler/cold air - and as it rises the moisture (and the air) cool. I will leave it to the student to figure out where this is going............. Especially given a warming trend overall. Whatever it's cause (yes, it really is people and/or the processes/changes they have made in the various xspheres), the results are quite predictable - and were, indeed, predicted.
 
Shalamar said:
Snow fell. Then it warmed slightly, then it all froze. The roads were all covered in ICE. And no Road clearing equipment, add that to people who aren't used to such conditions, and they ALL hit the highways at the same time...
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I would have figured that they would go crazy preparing for it, despite the fact that they weren't expecting that much, for that very reason. You know?

But then again, in a city that large that doesn't typically see those conditions, I can't imagine them having the utilities to do this anyway.

So long as it isn't REALLY cold, like it has been, they put down ridiculous amounts of salt days ahead of time up here and it doesn't typically stick to the main roadways much, whether it be snow, freezing rain or sleet.
 
Woolgatherer said:
It's a lot easier to drive on 14 inches of snow than it is to drive on ice.
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Even a trivial amount of ice is worse than a foot of snow.

We had about a 1/4" of freezing rain earlier this winter and it was an absolute disaster.

Either way I avoid the roads if possible. People drive like complete idiots, regardless.
 
WildCat said:
Atlanta <> Metro Atlanta

28 counties, really? Why not just include the whole state of Georgia?
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The metropolitan statistical area in question appears to be the same one used by the Census Bureau. The Office of Management and Budget periodically updates the area definitions for the metropolitan (and micropolitan) statistical areas, and those definitions are used by the Census Bureau. There are specific criteria by which a given county is determined to be part of a given statistical area.

Or, as the Census Bureau describes it:

Metropolitan Statistical Area

A geographic entity delineated by the Office of Management and Budget for use by federal statistical agencies. Metropolitan statistical areas consist of the county or counties (or equivalent entities) associated with at least one urbanized area of at least 50,000 population, plus adjacent counties having a high degree of social and economic integration with the core as measured through commuting ties.
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Cleon said:
Just sand and some gravel. Georgia doesn't use salt (this also contributed to the problem).
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Yeah, that's rough. How are things today? I haven't really been paying attention to the news.
 
IDB87 said:
Yeah, that's rough. How are things today? I haven't really been paying attention to the news.
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Right now, things are still stopped, but a lot of the major roads are clear, and the forecasters are temperatures to climb into the 40s and mostly melted by this evening.
 
Woolgatherer said:
It's a lot easier to drive on 14 inches of snow than it is to drive on ice.
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I have to agree with this. The worst snowstorms for traffic conditions in Denver typically are not the ones with large amounts of accumulation, but the ones that come late in the afternoon after warm sunny weather with a rapid temperature drop, a strong north wind, and an inch or two of snow. When the cold wind and snow hit the warm streets, it puts a layer of ice on them that frequently brings traffic to a standstill
 
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