Roads ‘extremely slick and hazardous,’ officials urge residents to stay put

Georgia and local officials are encouraging residents to stay home as winter storm Inga drops snow and ice on the Valley, leaving roads icy, frosted over and difficult to navigate.

The National Weather Service warned that roads would become “extremely slick and hazardous” as snow melts and refreezes, especially along bridges, which freeze before roadways do.

“The best advice is to stay off the roads,” the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety said on Twitter. “If it is absolutely essential for you to travel, drive slow, wear your seat belt and keep your eyes and attention on the road.”

Columbus Police Maj. Charles Kennedy is also urging drivers in town to stay put.

“The best thing we can tell people right now is ‘Don’t drive until it heats up.’,” he said. “Stay off the roads if it all possible.”

The Columbus Police Department is out in a full shift alongside public works crews. They’ve been working through the night to identify trouble spots and put sand on bridges, Kennedy said.

“They’re hitting them as quick as we’re calling them in. A number of the city’s bridge are already showing sings of ice and most of the roads are covered in snow.”

The city’s two major arteries, I-185 and JR Allen Parkway, are slick but passable, Kennedy said. He advised motorists to drive slow down those roads if it’s absolutely essential to travel.

The Georgia Department of Transportation sent work crews out to spray brine, but is still asking drivers to stay off the roads until the situation is more clear.

“We're fighting against snowfall and below freezing temps. Be patient with us as we're working around the clock to treat the roads,” the department wrote on Twitter.

This story was originally published January 17, 2018 at 7:20 AM with the headline "Roads ‘extremely slick and hazardous,’ officials urge residents to stay put."