Snow, Ice Cause Dozens Of Accidents In North Fulton

SANDY SPRINGS, GA — While the sun is shining and the snow and ice that accumulated on the roads late Tuesday evening is melting ever so slowly, North Fulton city officials are still encouraging you to avoid temptation and stay home. The winter weather that moved into the area has also ushered in bitterly cold temperatures, meaning travel conditions will remain dangerous since any precipitation left on the streets will refreeze.

In Sandy Springs, the city logged 31 accidents between 5 p.m. Tuesday and 8 a.m. Wednesday. Fortunately, city spokesperson Sharon Kraun said there were no injuries. To get ahead of the curve, Sandy Springs began treating its priority 1 and 2 roadways on Tuesday and made several rounds on those streets throughout the night and into Wednesday. Cres are currently out on Roswell, Johnson Ferry and Abernathy roads working to remove slush so they won't ice back over.

"While we had some of our residents try their luck at driving, — at least 31 overnight were not successful — for the most part, people stayed put," she added. "We've had no reports to our emergency operations center or the call center regarding power outages. Thus far, our trees have held steady — no reports of any falling."

Now that the sun is shining, streets in the direct path of sunlight will see some melting of snow. With the help of the wind, Kraun said the city is also getting reports of some areas actually drying. However, it's still well below freezing and the wind chill stands at 1 degree, so areas where there is snow slush on the ground will transform into ice.

"We continue to caution residents to be extra cautious if they do venture out," she added. "There is ice to contend with, and the bitter cold is also a hazard. Bundle up, limit exposure outdoors (including pets) and if you do drive, please keep it slow and steady. Anything that looks wet has a high probability of being ice."

Residents can keep abreast of any developments in the city by following its Facebook page.

Up in Milton, officers in that city have worked several accidents and reports of vehicles off the roadway, but nothing serious has been reported. City spokesperson Shannon Ferguson said there's still a significant amount of ice on the roads, which are "generally treacherous."

"Our Public Works staff are working in shifts to provide as broad a coverage as possible (non-state routes for the most part, especially larger, cross-city roads)," she added. "However, it is the fact that people are staying off of the roads that is keeping us relatively quiet on the emergency services front. Thankfully, because of the lighter drier snow and frigid temps, we are not dealing with trees down and lines down."

City of Johns Creek spokesperson Jeff Breslau said the roads will continue to be treated in that area, but stressed that the bitterly cold temperatures will refreeze anything that melts. While he's not aware of any road closures, Breslau said "we still highly recommend that residents remain off the roads if possible."

Alpharetta Assistant City Administrator James Drinkard said while arterial roads are in good shape, secondary roads with heavy tree coverage are still dangerous and "we are not seeing much progress." City crews have changed the salt/rock mixture they use to a 3:1 ratio, but Drinkard notes the roads are still refreezing quickly.

Residents should note the city does not treat neighborhood streets, as they are too narrow and "include too many obstacles that make it unsafe to operate our equipment."

Several accidents have been reported in the city, many of which are single-vehicle crashes in which drivers lost control due to road conditions.

"What many are mistaking for snow on the roads is actually ice, which is why we are strongly urging motorists to stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary," Drinkard added. "For the most part, drivers do seem to be heeding our recommendations. Area schools being closed likely has much to do with this."

The city also said trash collection was cancelled Wednesday. If road conditions allow, service will resume tomorrow for Wednesday accounts while Thursday accounts will be collected Friday and Friday accounts on Saturday. ‬

The conditions that have gripped much of north Georgia propelled Gov. Nathan Deal to declare a state of emergency for 83 counties impacted by the weather. The state government will also remain closed for non-essential personnel for Thursday, Jan. 18 in these affected counties.

"Our top priority is to ensure the safety of Georgians and to allow the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) to continue doing its job," said Deal. "Due to yesterday's winter weather and continued freezing temperatures, ice continues accumulating on our roadways. GDOT is responsible for the maintenance of more than 17,900 miles of state roads and interstates. Currently, there are more than 12,800 miles remaining to be cleared and treated. In light of this, I urge people to stay home, stay safe and remain off our roadways. We will continue monitoring the weather and will provide updates as necessary."

While the threat of additional winter weather accumulation is now over, the dangerously cold temperatures that have settled into the area are here to stay for several more hours. The National Weather Service says the high temperature for Wednesday will reach 26 degrees. However, winds will be out of the northwest around 15 miles per hour, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Of course, these gusts will make the temperature feel like it's closer to 0 degrees Fahrenheit.

Wednesday's low will bottom out to 17, and the wind gusts will remain as high as 25 mph. Thursday's forecast call for the high temperature pushing to 41 degrees while the low dipping back down to about 23 degrees.

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Images via Alpharetta Department of Public Safety and Johns Creek Police Department