Crews treating roads for icy conditions, urge drivers to use caution

ATLANTA — The rain, sleet and snow that fell most of Sunday are moving out, but the wet roads left behind could still freeze over throughout the night.

The Georgia Department of Transportation said it will be monitoring road conditions throughout the night because black ice could be a problem until the sun comes up Monday morning.

The roads were icy Sunday enough for car crashes — and a lot of them. GDOT said it saw the number of crashes increase continually throughout the day. Areas in the far north metro counties and north Georgia mountains will have the greater threat for icy roads.

Channel 2′s Matt Johnson monitored the roads on Severe Weather Chaser 2 throughout the night.

He found many people have been listening to local officials’ advice to stay off the roads.

Johnson said that during his travels Sunday night, he saw Cobb County transportation trucks hitting the road to treat roads before they could freeze over.

GDOT crews have been at it since Friday on Georgia interstates.

Johnson saw drivers loading up their trucks earlier Sunday in DeKalb County. Drivers he talked to say everything held up well, all things considered.

“I saw a few trees power lines toppled over, three to four accidents, but compared to last time when it snowed this was a breeze,” driver Sam Sanders said.

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In the city of Atlanta, there have been plenty of wet roads, but as of late Sunday night, there was no ice. City officials hope it stays that way.

“I’ve just seen some wet roads and not many slick spots so far,” driver Michael Ebeling said. “It’s pretty clear. It’s not icy or nothing like that. We haven’t encountered anything like that yet.”

City of Atlanta Department of Transportation crews told Channel 2′s Justin Wilfon they will continue to work into Monday morning treating the roads.

So far, city crews told Wilfon they have spread 540 tons of salt on 131 city roads and 96 bridges.

“Just be careful. Respect mother nature,” driver Mark Burnett said.

Severe Weather Team 2 said the windy conditions we saw through Sunday night may actually help curb the potential for black ice.

“That wind will help evaporate moisture on the roads, so the evaporation will continue through the night, with no more precipitation very unlikely across the area,” Severe Weather Team 2 Chief Meteorologist Glenn Burns said.

City crews said they are prioritizing roads that lead to hospitals, police stations and fire stations.

Also, with plenty of Martin Luther King Jr. Day events around the metro Monday, road crews want to make sure drivers are safe getting to those as well.

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