January 30, 2014

The Perfect (Snow) Storm: Birmingham Gridlock Explained

20140128_122201I was stuck at Beeson Divinity School Tuesday night because a rare snowstorm passed through the Birmingham region and shut down a significant portion of Alabama and Georgia. Now dubbed by some as the “Birmingham Gridlock” and (somewhat humorously) “snow apocalypse,” it was a relatively minor system that only served to reinforce the stereotypical view that Northerners had about the Southerners. As someone who has lived in the North for most of his life (Maryland, to be specific), I decided to chronicle exactly what transpired and why the entire city was paralyzed by it. Why? So that you not only understand exactly what happened but also to shine light on the plight some people have experienced since Tuesday night.

Also, I have prepared a five-minute video clip at the bottom of this post, and I hope you will enjoy it!

A Brief Chronicle of Birmingham’s Perfect (Snow) Storm

imageOver the few days prior to January 28th, James Spann, the iconic and somewhat legendary weatherman in the Birmingham area, asserted his followers that less than a “dusting” of snow would fall in the Birmingham area, while the worse would hit the area around Montgomery (see the graphic on the right). As a result, people were not too alarmed about it. Piece of cake.

People began their day as always – school buses came to pick up the children on time, people went to work, and college students got up for classes. It just happened that Tuesday was only the second day of the Spring Semester for Samford University and the first day of classes for most of its graduate schools (such as Beeson Divinity School).

Around 9:00 am, flurries began to swirl around in the Birmingham area. Just as predicted. No big deal.

However, by 11:00 am, “flurries” became more heavier and people started to notice it. Soon mayhem ensued: multiple school districts, county and state governments, and colleges/universities simultaneously announced that they would be closing and everyone headed started trying to reach home. People – especially those with children – left their workplaces immediately to pick up their children from school. Apparently the forecast was wrong!

Then the perfect (snow) storm happened. In a city of roughly one million residents, unaccustomed and unprepared for snow, thousands of motorists crashed, ran off the street, or were unable to go uphill (by the way, Birmingham is surrounded by hills). As thousands of people tried to leave their workplaces to pick up their children at the same time, traffic logjams were inevitable. People were forced to abandon their cars, trudge in the snow (think: high-heels shoes and sneakers with maybe a light coat) for several miles to seek warmer locations. The snow removal crews were unable to get anywhere, and emergency responders had problems navigating through the traffic jams. Everything came to a standstill.

Oh, I must also mention that about 11,375 children were stranded all over Alabama (not including those in Georgia!), unable to go home. Since their parents were unable to pick up their children, the students had to spend the night at their schools with their teachers.

All the hotels were booked by stranded motorists, and its lobbies were overflowing with many people trying to stay warm. Emergency shelters at community centers and churches sprang up to accompany the stranded motorists. Thousands more were stranded on I-20, I-65, and I-459 unable to go anywhere, and many spent the night in bone-chilling vehicles hoping that they had enough gas in tank to last the night.

Hence the “Birmingham Gridlock” and “snow apocalypse.” (And no, zombies were not walking around the city.) The same scene unfolded in Atlanta as well.

Birmingham Gridlock Explained

20140129_125124Alabama is indeed a stranger to snowfalls; it rarely receives a snowfall accumulation exceeding two inches at any given time. As a result, Birmingham doesn’t have the proper equipment or expertise to pre-treat the streets before a snowstorm hits. Alabama also experienced an unseasonably cold weather over this past week, and many people don’t have much cold weather clothing at hand. Finally, if you have been following the news over the past few years, Jefferson County and Birmingham city was still reeling from its recent bankruptcy court decision – in fact, the largest U.S. municipal bankruptcy ever. That meant the government has no cash left in its reserves to repave the streets, pay overtime money for court employees, support its prisons to keep our society safe, or even keep the city streets litter-free. Would they have money to invest in new snow removal equipment, road salt, and sand? Nope.

In fact, as I type this post, the road crews, state troopers, and even Alabama National Guardsmen are still working on clearing up the roads so that life can resume in “the gem of the South.” Kudos to them for their hard work!

A few concluding thoughts for the Northerners

1) Don’t ridicule Southerners for “shutting down” everything in the South or not being able to drive in wintry conditions.

As noted above, Alabama and Georgia rarely get any snow, and they do not have the right equipment to quickly remove the snow. Because we don’t have as much sand or salt available, it is more difficult for us to get it spread out on the roadways before motorists start venturing on the streets. Also, it was rather unexpected and the weather forecast was wrong this time. You would face the same problem if the government didn’t do their jobs through the night before you went to work in the morning.

But more importantly, please think twice before you say anything like that. Think about how your words might sound to those who might be trying to reach their loved ones if not only their own children, only to be forced to leave them with other people in a strange and uncomfortable location. Think about how your words might sound to those who are worried that their loved one will be warm enough overnight while stuck on an Interstate, unable to move anywhere. Think about how it would have sound to those whose loved ones were in hospital, and they were not able to reach them in time. That, to me, is an unkind thing to do in the immediate aftermath of a storm.

2) It is no laughing matter when weather-related phenomenon resulted in fatalities.

As far as I know, five people were killed and 20+ injured in Birmingham last night as a result of this storm. The hospitals was full, and many emergency responders struggled to get to people who were in a dire need. Even police officers helped deliver a baby while they were stranded on an Atlanta freeway during the snowstorm on Tuesday. That could have turned out bad in a moment’s notice, but it thankfully did not.

3) Pray for those who are confronted with and suffering from extraordinary and unusual circumstances beyond their control.

At Beeson, a group of students and faculty/staff members stranded on campus gathered to pray for those who were having problems traveling on the streets. I hope you prayed wherever you were when you first heard about what was happening on the news stations. We should always be quick to listen and pray on the behalf of other people, making a special petition to the Lord that he will grant mercy and protect people from harm.

4) Praise the Lord that there are still many compassionate and kind people in America!

This storm has also been an amazing chronicle of extraordinary Southern hospitality and  kindness. Strangers were taking care of each other while stuck on highways, truckers brought coffee and food to motorists who were unable to get anywhere, and even Chick-fil-a gave away free chicken sandwiches to the stranded drivers. Samford University even served hot meals for the commuters and faculty and staff members who were stuck on the campus (me being one of them). As I think about it, I am truly fortunate to live in a place like Birmingham and experience the Southern hospitality in such a time like this!

*****

On a final and lighter note, I hope you will enjoy a brief 5-minute clip of the various pictures I took during the snow storm close to where I live in Homewood, AL!

All images and video were taken by Bruce L. Persons. Video can be used with prior written permission. © 2014 Bruce L. Persons. All rights reserved.

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