- City and county officials are implementing a mandatory curfew and salting roads and bridges to prevent accidents.
- Local shelters, including the Salvation Army and Fountain of Life, are open to provide warmth and safety for those in need.
- Watch the video to see how emergency teams are tackling the icy weather and keeping neighbors safe.
BROADCAST SCRIPT
Snow is starting to fall across Thomasville, and leaders are already racing to stay ahead of the ice.
"The big thing is being able to stay warm—I mean, you can literally freeze to death; you can get hypothermia," said Hickey.
I'm tracking how the city and county are working together to keep everyone safe during this freezing weather.
The City of Thomasville and Thomas County leaders held an emergency meeting Tuesday morning to review National Weather Service updates and plan strategies for road safety, emergency response, and public safety during the freeze.
Chris Jones, the Director of EMS, says the main propriety is keeping everyone out of icy roads.
"Throughout the nighttime, overnight hours is when it's especially dangerous for our staff answering calls. That's why the curfew is going into place—to let our road departments, police, and sheriff's offices work without extra traffic getting in the way or pulling focus," said Jones.
That mandatory curfew starts Tuesday at 8 PM and runs until 8 AM Wednesday.
Residents are urged to stay home unless it's an emergency.
Chris Jones says the Georgia Department of Transportation is salting state route bridges, while public works crews are focusing on key local roads and bridges.
"One of the significant things we're uncertain of is how much ice might accumulate on our roadways, which will really affect our response times. We're still going to answer emergency calls to the best of our abilities, but response times might be longer than usually," said Jones.
For anyone needing shelter, both the Fountain of Life and Salvation Army are opening their doors.
The Fountain of Life has 16 beds available, while the Salvation Army can house over 200 people.
Robyn Hickey from the Salvation Army tells me they're expecting 50 to 75 people tonight.
"That weather is unheard of for Thomasville and our surrounding county, so people need somewhere safe and warm to be. The last thing we want is someone driving on icy roads or over bridges," said Hickey.
Hickey says the shelters are open so people don't try risky ways to stay warm, which can lead to dangerous situations.
"There always seems to be an incident where a house catches on fire or we lose someone because they sat in their car and didn't have the ventilation to let the fumes get out," said Hickey.
Leaders urge residents to request a free smoke detector from the county or city's fire department to prevent fires during the freeze.
Schools and administrative offices will remain closed tomorrow
Chris Jones tells me the curfew might be extended if roads are still icy on Thursday morning.
