At a press conference, Deal and other state officials thanked Georgians for following their advice to avoid unnecessary travel on Wednesday but asked for patience cleaning up any ice or snow. They said hundreds of employees have pre-treated interstate roadways and are ready to clear any ice or snow, help motorists and advise semi drivers traveling through affected areas if needed.
Forecasters have warned of a potential for 3 to 6 inches of snow across north Georgia and a winter storm warning is in effect through Thursday morning.
Following a January 2014 ice storm that crippled metro Atlanta, Deal convened a task force to make recommendations of how to better prepare. He said Wednesday that state agencies have ably handled three weather situations in the last 10 days and still are learning ways to improve.
"I believe the lesson we are learning even of this morning as we noted the smaller volume of traffic on the interstates is that the public is willing to be a participating partner," he said.
Department of Transportation employees pre-treated interstates starting at midnight on Tuesday but removing precipitation will take longer, said Department of Transportation Commissioner Russell McMurry.
"We just don't want a false sense of security (and drivers) getting out on the roadways too soon," he said.
Deal had previously issued a state of emergency starting at 2 p.m. Wednesday for 51 counties in north Georgia. He said state offices in the affected areas will delay opening Thursday until 10 a.m.
Deal
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