If you were not in Birmingham or Atlanta this past week, you might wonder why people are talking about 2 inches of snow like it's a huge deal and even making Facebook albums called "Snowmageddon" or "Snowpocalypse." After all, can 2 inches of snow really send two metropolitan cities into mass chaos? The answer is yes.
In attempts to explain exactly what happened, lots of people have posted interesting articles about the events on Tuesday, January 28th, 2014. The summary is this:
- We were expecting flurries and no accumulation, not two inches of snow.
- Nearly every single school and business let out at the exact time.
- Birmingham and Atlanta have bad traffic even on days when there is perfect weather conditions and staggered traffic patterns.
- We have no salt trucks here.
- The snow quickly turned to ice.
All of these factors led to a domino-effect phenomenon that had very far-reaching results. My own adventure felt quite epic on Tuesday, but I quickly learned that I had one of the most mild experiences. Here's how it went:
- 10:15 AM, Tuesday: My principal announces that she has just gotten the call that we will be dismissing in fifteen minutes due to inclement weather. (We normally have 2-3 hours notice for early dismissals.)
- 10:30 AM, Tuesday: All teachers report to their assigned spots. The Special Area/Special Ed teachers have the wonderful fortune of helping load students into their cars in the snow that is continually falling. Thank goodness I remember to bring my rain boots to school that day though!
- 11:15 AM, Tuesday: The cars have stopped coming so we go inside the gym where quite a lot of children remain. My principal dismisses the teachers.
- 11:30, Tuesday: I begin my approximately 3 mile drive home that usually takes me about 8 minutes. The road is covered in snow and traffic is a gridlock.
- 1:00, Tuesday: After going less than a mile in an hour and a half, I run into the Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market to get food and water. I continue to inch along and see more and more people on foot. Abandoned cars are becoming a common sight.
- 2:30, Tuesday: After precariously driving up several hills that thankfully had more snow than ice on them at this point, I make it home after three hours in the car. Tired but relieved.
- Remainder of Tuesday: As I read Facebook posts and watch the news, I begin to realize that my three hour commute was nothing compared to what most people are suffering... tales of coworkers whose commutes are 8-10 hours, friends who have to abandon their cars and seek shelter some place, people who walk miles in their "dress clothes", and most significantly, more than 10,000 students that spend the night in schools including a handful of children at my own school.
- Wednesday: The stories go on and on. Many people are still stranded. Meanwhile, we watch movies and go for long walks after getting cabin fever while remaining thankful that we have plenty of hot water, warm heat, and no frozen pipes that burst. Our house is more full than usual with three extra house guests who couldn't get home on Tuesday, plus two of my roommate's coworkers who join the fun on Wednesday night so they can get to work the next morning. In fact, that night we had 8 people sleeping in our 3 BR/1BA house!
- Thursday: Things begin to thaw and people get out more. I venture out to the grocery store in the afternoon and am surprised to get a call that school is canceled again on Friday. However, there are still several teachers from my school that still had not made it home as of Thursday afternoon.
- Friday: Today I get dressed in something other than snow pants, work-out pants, or pajamas and put on make-up for the first time in several days. Might as well be productive and enjoy an extra day off so I run several errands and get things done around the house.
