It is not often that Georgians get to see some serious snow but just last week, January 10th through the 14th that is just what they saw. The first snowfall came Sunday night and left an average of seven inches on some very anxious Georgian’s lawns. The roads were hidden from view and were for the most part indistinguishable from the regular ground. However, the snow did not come as a surprise, students and teachers alike were already expecting for school to be cancelled at least till Wednesday. Everywhere, people rushed to the stores to stock up on necessities such as bread, milk, eggs, and even barrels of cheese puffs in preparation for the unsafe conditions of the roads. With their barren shelves, Cherokee County’s grocery stores resembled wastelands. To the multitude of Georgians, it appeared they were going to be trapped at home for days.It turned out that Georgians were right. School ended up being cancelled due to the heavy snowfall, giving students and unexpected break. The snow began to melt away on Thursday, but it was not until Friday that the roads became safe to drive on. Still, it was not quite safe enough for buses to be put back in use yet, so a whole week of school was missed.
The Cherokee County school board was then faced with the task of rescheduling the days missed. The first idea that went around was that students would attend school on Saturdays for awhile, but that was quickly ruled out. Next, the board considered cancelling February break but that seemed unfair and was also dismissed. Then a fair decision was reached: students would attend school on March 17th and 18th which were originally furlough days.
Yet the peril of the roads did not deter those who were determined to get out of their homes (after all four days stuck inside is a long time indeed). Many of the automobiles on the road were SUVs and trucks with four-wheel drive. But Cherokee County officials did make sure to clear the main roads, such as hospital roads, quickly and efficiently.
A snowfall ranging around 7 inches last occurred in the Blizzard of 1993. This snow storm was definitely more pleasant than the Blizzard of 1993, which stretched from Canada to Central America and left 300 dead in the United States. Thankfully this time around the snowfall was not nearly as devastating. The fact that school has been cancelled various times due to snow is astonishing as snow is usually rare in Georgia, even during the winter season.
Written by: Taylor Gates
