Watch Out for Black Ice This Morning, Officials Say

The main concern on the roads in Stephens County and northeast Georgia this morning is black ice.

The Georgia Department of Transportation said that refreezing has occurred in areas overnight, which means black ice in spots.

The DOT said bridges are most likely to suffer from black ice.

Black ice this morning is also a concern of local officials.

Toccoa City Manager Billy Morse said people need to be aware of that possibility if they are headed out early this morning.

“We do want people to be safe, especially on the back roads, the residential roads,” said Morse.  “Be careful.”

Stephens County Sheriff Randy Shirley also said black ice is a concern, as well as icing in areas on secondary roads that did not get a lot of sun Thursday to help with melting.

Shirley also urged caution on the roads this morning.

“There are shaded areas in the county,” said Shirley.  “There will be icing and if you do drive through the shaded areas, drive slowly.”

Overall, Morse and Shirley said things went fairly well in the area Thursday.

Morse said the city of Toccoa did not encounter any major problems.

“We appreciate the public staying at home and off the roads for the most part,” said Morse.  “That allowed our guys to plow the roads.”

Morse said the city feels good about people being able to get out and about on Friday.

He also said Wednesday night and Thursday were quiet from a public safety perspective, with the fire department responding to a couple of calls.

Meanwhile, Shirley said that Thursday started out tricky, but improved as the day went along.

He also said that there were no major problems.

“It has been a very good team effort by everybody in public works and public safety,” said Shirley.  “I am proud of the job everybody did.”

Temperatures should rise again today in an effort to help get rid of any leftover ice issues in the county.

From 7 a.m. Tuesday to 7 a.m. Thursday, WNEG measured 8.2 inches of snow in downtown Toccoa, along with just under half an inch of rain, freezing rain, and sleet.

However, because of melting, the snow depth at one time never exceeded three to four inches in downtown Toccoa.