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THANKS FOR COMING IN, MR. MAYOR,
GLAD TO BE WITH YOU.
>> YOU KNOW HOW ANGRY PEOPLE ARE
AT YOU?
>> I DON'T FEEL THAT PEOPLE ARE
ANGRY AT ME.
I THINK THEY HAVE A GREAT DEAL
OF FRUSTRATION.
>> YOU DON'T THINK PEOPLE ARE
ANGRY AT YOU?
>> THIS IS THE DEAL, CAROL, WHAT
I'VE BEEN DOING IS WORKING
NONSTOP TO ALLEVIATE A TOUGH
SITUATION.
WE GOT 1 MILLION PEOPLE OUT OF
THE CITY.
WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY FATE TAALITIE
GOT ALL OF THE CHILDREN WHO ARE
IN THE SYSTEM OFF THE BUSES.
AND I'VE BEEN COMMUNICATES WITH
PEOPLE ON A REGULAR BASIS.
>> THERE ARE PLENTY OF PEOPLE
WHO SAY THE SCHOOL CHILDREN
SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN PLACED IN
THAT POSITION.
THAT SCHOOLS SHOULD HAVE BEEN
CLOSED?
>> WELL SH, CAROL, IF YOU'RE BE
FAIR, YOU WOULD POINT OUT THAT
THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEMS MAKES
THE CALL WHEN THE SCHOOLS ARE
CLOSED.
YOU OUGHT TO BE FAIR.
THE ATLANTA PUBLIC SCHOOL
SYSTEMS CALLS AND THE SCHOOL
SYSTEMS INDEPENDENTLY CALL WHEN
THEY CLOSE.
SO WHAT WE DID WAS COMMUNICATE.
AND YESTERDAY, IMMEDIATELY, I
SAID THAT I THOUGHT IT WAS A
MISTAKE FOR BUSINESS, GOVERNMENT
AND THE SCHOOLS TO ANNOUNCE
THOSE CLOSURES.
WHICH CAUSED PEOPLE TO FLOW INTO
THE STREETS AND CREATED A MAJOR
TRAFFIC JAM.
I WENT ON THE LOCAL NEWS --
>> SO JUST OVERRULED YOUR
SUGGESTIONS?
>> THIS ISN'T AN OVERRULING.
I SAID IF I WOULD HAVE HAD MY
DRUTHERS WE WOULD HAVE STAGGERED
THE CLOSINGS BUT FOR YOU TO
REPRESENT OR MAKE IT SEEM THAT I
CONTROL WHEN THE SCHOOLS CLOSE
OR BUSINESSES THAT'S NOT THE
CASE.
>> SO WHO IS TO BLAME?
>> I THINK THAT WAS A MISTAKE
AND SHARED RESPONSIBILITY.
>> WHO MADE THE DECISION TO
ALLOW SCHOOLS TO LET OUT,
BUSINESSES TO LET OUT AND
GOVERNMENT OFFICES TO LET OUT AT
THE SAME TIME?
>> THE SAME WAY THAT CNN
RELEASED THEIR EMPLOYEES, OTHER
PASSES RELEASED THEIR EMPLOYEES.
THERE WERE A SERIES OF
INDEPENDENT DECISIONS WHEN THEY
SAW THAT THE GOVERNMENT WAS
CLOSED AND THAT APS WAS CLOSING,
THOUSANDS OF EMPLOYEES DECIDED
TO RELEASE THEIR EMPLOYEES.
DURING THE DAY, THERE ARE 1.1
MILLION PEOPLE IN THE CITY.
AND ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE LEFT AT
ABOUT THE SAME TIME WHICH CAUSED
A MASSIVE TRAFFIC JAM WHICH
CAUSED A GREAT DIFFICULTY.
THAT BEING SAID, WE GOT 1
MILLION PEOPLE OUT OF THE CITY.
WE DID NOT HAVE ANY FATALITIES.
WE CLEARED WAIT OF OUR
HOSPITALS, ALL OF OUR POLICE
STATIONS AND FIRESTATIONS.
>> WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY
FATALITIES, BUT THAT WAS BY THE
GRACE OF GOD.
>> NO IT'S NOT BY THE GRACE OF
GOD.
>> PEOPLE GOT OUT OF THEIR CARS
IN ICY SITUATIONS.
>> BUT YOU'RE --
>> I WAS STUCK IN THE CAR.
>> IF YOU PUT UP CNN CAMERAS IT
LOOKS PRETTY GOOD OUTSIDE OF
CNN.
IT'S NOT BY THE GRACE OF GOD,
IT'S BY PEOPLE WORKINGS CAROL.
IT'S BY THE GRACE OF GOD AND
THOUSANDS OF EMPLOYEES WHO DID
NOT GO TO SLEEP WORKING VERY
HARD ALL NIGHT LONG.
SO I CERTAINLY SAID IMMEDIATELY
YESTERDAY THAT RELEASING ALL OF
THESE FOLKS WAS NOT THE RIGHT
WAY TO GO.
AND THE ONLY THING I'VE BEEN
DOING IS WORKING CONSTANTLY.
AND I AGREE THAT GOD DEFINITELY
HAD A ROLE IN IT.
BUT GOD NEEDS PARTNERS AND
THAT'S PEOPLE OUT HERE DOING
THEIR WORK.
WE'RE IN THE FIRST DAY OF THE
STORM AND WE'RE WORK
BUT I'M PARTNERING WITH OUR
STATE PARTNERS TO GET PEOPLE OFF
OF THE FREEWAYS.
>> LET'S TALK ABOUT THE STREETS
WITHIN THE CITY OF ATLANTA.
I DROVE TO WORK THIS MORNING.
SOME OF THEM ARE QUITE ICY AND
FRANKLY DANGEROUS.
I HAVE TALKED TO MANY, MANY
PEOPLE WHO SAY THEY HAVEN'T SEEN
A SALT TRUCK ANYWHERE.
>> OBVIOUSLY, THERE ARE SALT
TRUCKS.
THE STREETS ARE SALTED AND DONE
ON MY ROUTE HERE.
I DROVE ON THE SAME ROADS YOU
RODE ON AND I GOT HERE IN 20
MINUTES.
I KNOW THAT WE HAD A FLEET OF 30
SPREADERS, 40 SNOWPLOWS AND OUR
CREWS HAVE BEEN RUNNING NONSTOP
ON 12-HOUR SHIFTS.
OF COURSE, THERE ARE GOING TO BE
ROADS THAT ARE ICY.
WHAT I KNOW IS THAT WE ARE
RESPONDING AHEAD OF THE STORM.
YOU WERE HERE IN 2011.
>> YES, I WAS
>>> THE CITY WAS CLOSED TWO AND
THREE DAYS.
>> I WAS GOING TO SAY OTHER
CITIES HAVE THESE PROBLEMS.
>> WE HAVE STARTED IMMEDIATELY.
WE STARTED IMMEDIATELY.
THE BOTTOM LINE IS, WE'RE GOING
TO WORK NONSTOP WE'RE GOING TO
GET THE CITY OPEN AND
OPERATIONAL FASTER.
WE ARE GOING TO PARTNER WITH THE
STATE AND GET PEOPLE OFF THE
FREEWAYS AND KEEP PEOPLE SAFE.
>> OTHER CITIES SEEM TO HAVE IT
TOGETHER WHEN THINGS HAPPEN LIKE
THIS.
YOU COULD ARGUE THAT CITIES LIKE
ATLANTA AREN'T USED TO DEALING
WITH WEATHER LIKE THIS BUT IT
JUST HAPPENED A COUPLE OF YEARS
AGO.
SO YOU HAD A PRACTICE RUN.
SOME CITIZENS MIGHT SAY, YOU
LEARNED NOTHING FROM THAT,
BECAUSE IT WAS WORSE THIS TIME.
>> THEY SHOULD GO BACK AND LOOK
AT YOUR CNN TAPE.
DURING THE LAST STORM, THE CITY
DIDN'T HAVE ANY SNOW EQUIPMENT.
IT TOOK DAYS.
FOR THE FIRST TWO DAYS, IT WAS
KIND OF LIKE SNOW DAYS.
WE WERE RESPONDING IMMEDIATELY.
WE STARTED DEICING THE CITY
BEFORE THE SNOW EVER FELL WECHLT
ARE NOW IN DAY ONE OF THIS
CRISIS.
WE ARE FULLY STAFFED AND RUNNING
12-SHIFTS.
IT IS NOT ANYWHERE AS BAD AS IT
WAS IN 2011 WHERE IT LASTED
THREE OR FOUR DAYS.
NO NOTHING WAS DONE.
NOBODY HAD ANY EQUIPMENT.
THIS TIME, WE HAD SAND AND
GRAVEL AND WE HAD IT LOCATED
WITHIN THE CITY.
WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO IS
CONTINUE TO WORK AND GET THE
CITY OPEN AND OPERATIONAL.
WE ARE GOING TO GO OUT AND
PARTNER WITH THE STATE AND GET
FOLKS OFF THE FREEWAYS.
>> IF THIS HAPPENS A MONTH FROM
NOW AND I HOPE IT DOESN'T, WHAT
WOULD YOU DO DIFFERENTLY?
>> WHAT WE WOULD DO IS STAGGER
ALL OF THE CLOSINGS, COORDINATE
MORE WITH THE BUSINESS
COMMUNITY, THE LOCAL SCHOOL
SYSTEM AND THE STATE ON OUR
CLOSINGS SO WE DON'T HAVE THE