As we thaw out from the weekend’s snowfall, now is a good time to look back 15 years at another snow event.
January 2010 brought unusual winter weather to Georgia, with not one but two significant snow events that disrupted daily life and left a lasting mark on the state. Let’s revisit that frosty month, when snow and ice turned Georgia into a wintry landscape.
The Time
The year was 2010. Barack Obama was in the White House, navigating his first term as President of the United States. Sonny Perdue served as Georgia’s governor, overseeing the state during both economic challenges and unexpected weather events.
In popular culture, the iPad was unveiled to the world, Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” dominated the airwaves, and moviegoers were introduced to the now-iconic Minions in Despicable Me.
While much of the nation was focused on emerging technologies and blockbuster entertainment, Georgia had its eyes on the skies—and the snow that would soon fall.
The Events
The first snowstorm arrived on January 7th, as a strong cold front swept across the state. Light snow began falling in north and central Georgia late that morning and continued into the early hours of January 8th. Snowfall amounts ranged from light dustings to several inches in higher elevations. Temperatures dropped well below freezing and stayed there, turning untreated roads into sheets of ice and creating hazardous driving conditions that persisted through the weekend. Schools and businesses closed, and many Georgians hunkered down to ride out the icy conditions.
Just a few weeks later, Georgia was hit again. On January 29th and 30th, a larger winter storm impacted the southeastern United States, bringing snow, sleet, and freezing rain to parts of Georgia.
The northeast portion of the state bore the brunt of the storm, with some areas reporting accumulations of up to two inches of snow. Freezing rain coated trees and power lines, adding to the challenges. This storm left roads icy for days, prompting more closures and disruptions.
The Impact
Snow removal equipment and salt supplies were limited, leaving many roads untreated. The storms reignited discussions about Georgia’s preparedness for rare but impactful winter weather events.
Those discussions were but a foreshadowing of the city’s ultimate failure to prepare for a major snow event just four years later that became known as Snowpocalypse.
For those who lived through it, the snow of 2010 was a mix of beauty and inconvenience. While drivers struggled with icy roads, children reveled in unexpected snow days, sledding down hills and building snowmen in neighborhoods where snow was a rare treat.
Information for The Georgia Chronicles is gathered from local news sources from the time period covered in the article as well as other historical sources.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
