Preparing for the Eclipse in Roswell, Georgia

Here in Georgia, American Medical Response (AMR) services the 9-1-1 zones for North Fulton, South Fulton, Dekalb and Troup Counties. We’re fortunate in the sense that the highly-populated metro Atlanta area is just outside of the totality path. We’ll witness a 97% partial eclipse. The totality of the eclipse in Georgia will be generalized in the extreme northeast of the state, and most people in the metro Atlanta area will be traveling to that region for the best views. Traffic We started our preparations at the end of July. Our main concern has been the excessive vehicle traffic we foresee as visitors from Atlanta travel to northeast Georgia and back for the viewing. The AMR North Fulton market is where Georgia State Route 400 is located. This is a major artery that feeds into Northeast Georgia from the Metro Atlanta area, and we expect heavy traffic. We don’t have the best infrastructure when it comes to handling daily traffic, so any increase can be monumental. We anticipate the increase to begin August 20th, the day before the eclipse, as well as the three to four hours before and after the eclipse on the 21st. We’re also anticipating a slight increase in motor vehicle accidents as people try to watch or film the eclipse while driving. Altered School Schedules Schools in the area will be delaying student dismissal until after the eclipse has taken place. This will have all the local schools letting students out at or around the same time, which will increase traff...
Source: JEMS: Journal of Emergency Medical Services News - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Tags: News Operations Source Type: news