UPDATE Jan. 13, 5:03 p.m.: Rockdale County Public Schools will be closed on Friday due to continued icy road conditions.

Rockdale County and city of Conyers government offices will have a delayed opening at 10 a.m. on Friday.

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(Jan. 13, 12:55 p.m.) Black Shoals Park and Randy Poynter Lake will remain closed due to ice and hazardous road conditions, according to county spokesperson Erica Fatima. The park, at 3001 Black Shoals Road Northeast in Conyers, will reopen at 7 a.m., Saturday, January 15 weather permitting.

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(Jan. 12, 7:42 p.m.): Black ice has been reported at the following locations as of Wednesday evening, according to the Rockdale County Sheriff's Office:

• 885-903 Ralph Rd
• Humphries Rd at Enchanted Lake Rd
• 900-1200 block of Gees Mill Rd
• Cowan Rd in area of Camary Place Subdivision
• Humphries Rd at Irwin Bridge Rd
• Irwin Bridge Rd at Farmer Rd
• Hwy 138 S at Amherst Subdivision
• Flat Shoals Rd at Still Meadow Rd
• Hwy 138 at Miller Bottom Rd
• Day Rd at Pleasant Hill Rd
• 2039 -2270 Lake Capri Rd
• Honey Creek Rd at Hwy 212
• 1297 Pleasant Hill Rd (between the county line and Bethel Rd) 

Ice was also spotted at:

• Oglesby Bridge, at the South River

 Rockdale County and City of Conyers government offices will have a delayed opening at 10 a.m. on Thursday, January 13 due to icy road conditions.

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(Jan. 12, 5:33 p.m.): Rockdale County Public Schools have been canceled for Thursday, for the fourth day in a row after Sunday's snow and ice storm.

RCPS students also have a three day weekend coming up on the calendar with Martin Luther King day on Jan. 17 as a previously scheduled holiday.

The Board of Education work session on Thursday has been canceled as well.

Rockdale County government offices will be opened at 10 a.m. due to refreezing conditions over night and black ice on roads forming.

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 (Jan. 12, 3:59 p.m.): The State of the City address has been rescheduled to take place in an abbreviated format at the Conyers City Council meeting next Wednesday, Jan. 19, 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, second floor of the Conyers Police Department at 1194 Scott Street. 

The Community Spirit Award recipients and Employee of the Year will also be recognized during the meeting.

For more information, contact City Clerk Pat Smith at 770-929-4226 or Director of Public Relations Jennifer Edwards at 770-929-4299.  The meeting will also be recorded to air on Rockdale Channel 23 and will be streamed on the city of Conyers website (www.conyersga.com)

Also, the city of Conyers reported 23 accidents since Sunday evening, with nine of those on Interstate 20, and one minor injury. Those accident numbers are comparable to numbers seen during normal weather, according to Conyers Police Department Capt. Mike Waters. "I would suspect this had to do with the low amount" of people out on the road, he said.

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(Jan. 12, 11:08 a.m.): The city of Conyers State of the City address scheduled for Thursday has been cancelled. City officials are meeting to discuss whether to rechedule the address, according to city spokesperson Jennifer Edwards..

Trash and recycling pick up schedules have been modified for residents in the city of Conyers.

Residents with a normal Tuesday sanitation pickup will be picked up on Thursday, January 13.

Residents with a normal Thursday recycling pickup will be picked up on Friday, January 14.

Residents with a normal Friday recycling pickup will be picked up on Saturday, January 15.

A recorded message at Allied Waste Services said customers with trash pick up normally on Monday, Jan. 10, through Wednesday, Jan. 12, would have trash pick up services resuming on their normal days next week, from Jan. 17 - Jan. 19. Additional bags may be left at the curb next week for service.

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(Jan. 12, 10:53 a.m.) The US Postal Service will resume mail delivery today in Rockdale and Conyers to the boxes that mail carriers can safely reach. The Conyers post offices on Ga. Highway 139 and Green Street are open.

The Rockdale County Sheriff's Office reports that all streets that were closed previously have been checked and reopened.

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(Jan. 11, 7:32 p.m.) Rockdale County Public Schools are closed for Wednesday. Janitors will be contacted by their schools pricipals about preparing walkways for school on Thursday.

City of Conyers government offices will open at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 12.  Conyers Municipal Court is cancelled for Wednesday, Jan. 12, according to city spokesperson Jennifer Edwards.

Rockdale County government offices and courts will open at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 12, according to county spokesperson Erica Fatima.

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(Jan. 11, 3:32 p.m.): Rockdale is slowly thawing out Tuesday afternoon, and some businesses are slowly opening back up again.

Both directions of I-20 are open and are mostly clear, though snow and slush remain on the side lanes.

Klondike Road, near the I-20 entrance, has been closed off since Tuesday morning, with a tractor trailer and SUVs stranded.

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(Jan. 11, 2:52 p.m.) According to the Rockdale County Sheriff's Department there have been 19 accidents throughout the past 24 hours.

Only one of the accidents involved an injury. That incident occured Monday around 12:30 p.m. at the intersection of Rockbridge Rd and Sigman Rd. A vehicle slid into the side of a dump truck and the driver complained of head pain.

Workers continue to make try and make the roads safe as Sigman Rd at Rockbridge Rd and at Lester Rd is now open, according the RCSO.

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(Jan. 11, 1:32 p.m.): Power was restored to the Conyers Walmart and all 1,400 Snapping Shoals customers at 1:24 p.m. The outage occurred at 12:40 p.m. and was caused by a material failure and was unrelated to the weather, Snapping Shoals spokesperson Leigh-Anne Burgess said in an e-mail.

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(Jan. 11, 1:33 p.m.): SSEMC crews are currently working to restore power to approximately 1,400 customers, including Wal-Mart, in the Old Covington Highway/Gees Mill Road area.

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(Jan 11., 12:32 p.m).: One lane eastbound  of I-20 has been opened through Conyers. Westbound direction is open as well.

"I-20 westbound has been reopened as well, but traffic at exit 80 (West Avenue) is being rerouted off of the interstate to reenter the interstate at Sigman Road (exit 78) due to ice remaining on the roadway," said city spokesperson Jennifer Edwards.

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(Jan. 11, 10:32 a.m.): The stretch of I-20 between West Avenue and Ga. Highway 138, east and westbound, is still closed but is expected to open soon, according to Conyers Police Department Capt. Mike Waters. Georgia DOT along with Conyers police worked throughout the night to move stranded tractor trailer trucks off the highway or onto the emergency lanes.

Most of the major roads throughout Rockdale are open, but still icy. Parker Road Bridge will remain closed today.

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(Jan. 10, 4:31 p.m.): Rockdale County government offices and courts will remain closed Tuesday due to inclement weather.

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(Jan. 10, 4:07 p.m.): The Rockdale County Board of Comissioners regular voting meeting scheduled for Tuesday has been postponed due to inclement weather.

The meeting has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 18 at 10 a.m. with a work session to follow for voting session. The meeting is open to the public.

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(Jan. 10, 2:54 p.m.): As snow and ice continue to linger the Rockdale the Heritage vs. Salem basketball game originally scheduled for Tuesday has been cancelled.

Around 1 p.m. the coaches for the two teams decided conditions would not be safe enough for players, coaches and fans.

"Safety comes first," Salem boys' coach Darren Wilkens said. "With the weather being this bad we didn't need to have the kids out."

As of Monday afternoon, Rockdale's Tuesday matchup vs. Cedar Shoals had not been officially cancelled. However, Bulldogs' coach Alvin Williams expected the game not to be played. 

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(Jan. 10, 2:05 p.m.): Georgia Perimeter College and DeKalb Tech will be closed tomorrow, Tuesday. GPC will be open Wednesday, according to its website.

Parts of Sigman Road, between Rockbridge Road and the Sheriff's Office, are reportedly also being blocked off or have limited access, due to difficulty with ice.

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(Jan. 10, 1:20 p.m.): There will be no United States Postal Service mail delivery on Monday. According to a staff member at the Ga. 138 post office, the 18-wheeler tractor trailer trucks that transport mail have been unable to travel on the expressways, due to icy conditions. The post office itself is open, however.

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(Jan. 10, 12:57 p.m.): City of Conyers government offices to be closed Tuesday, Jan. 11, due to ice and weather conditions.

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(Jan. 10, 12:05 p.m.): Interstate 20 will be shut down in Conyers between exits 82 and 80 on the east and westbound lanes.

"The Conyers Police Department is working with the Department of Transportation and they have decided to shut down I-20 east and westbound between exits 80 and 82 in Conyers at this time. The interstate is expected to remain closed for at least one hour if not more due to icy conditions and multiple accidents," said a city spokesperson.

Check back to www.rockdalenews.com for updates.

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(Jan. 10, 10:44 a.m.): Parker Road Bridge and Lake Capri Road have been closed, due to icy road conditions, by city and county law enforcement.

Since 8 p.m. last night as of 10:30 a.m. Monday, there have been 26 crashes in the county and 6 in the city reported.

Sheriff Jeff Wigington said the jail and 911 center have been fully staffed and patrol cars specially fit with snow tires have been deployed throughout the county since 8 p.m. Sunday.

If a car has to be abandoned by the roadside, he advised drivers to try and move to the shoulder or grassy area. If the vehicle is in a lane of traffic or blocking a turn lane, it will be towed.

"It wouldn't be a bad idea to call 911; if they should abandon the car it's better they tell us," Wigington said.

Conyers Public Works manager Brad Sutton said road crews would concentrate on sanding intersections and main roads, such as the roads to the hospital. The city has one sand truck.

He said crews were working in shifts around the clock, and sanding efforts would intensify after the slush harded. He pointed out if the sand was spread before, it would become part of the ice.

Rockdale County spokesperson Erica Fatima said the county had one sand truck as well, which would focus on bridges and problem areas identified by the Rockdale County Sheriff's Office. The county does not have the vehicles or equipment to clear subdivisions or clear the roads of snow, she said."This is unprecidented, this amount of snow and ice," she said.

She said emergency services agencies are able to respond to emergencies. Fire department trucks have chains on their wheels and are able to go through the roads. So far, there hasn't been an uptick in calls for the Fire Department, said Fatima.

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(Jan. 10, 12:51 a.m.): Georgia Perimeter College, DeKalb Tech are closed Monday due to inclement weather, according to their websites. The main campus of Clayton State University and the Fayette campus of Clayton State are also closed on Monday due to weather.

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(Jan. 9, 11:56 p.m.) Rockdale County government offices are closed, Monday, Jan. 10 due to inclement winter weather. GDOT advises motorists to stay indoors and use extreme caution if travel is necessary.

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(Jan. 9, 11: 23 p.m.) The city of Conyers government offices will be closed due to inclement weather Monday, acccording to a released statement.

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(Jan. 9, 8:27 p.m.) Rockdale County Public Schools are closed for Monday, according to school officials. No word on Tuesday's status yet. The Eastminster School and Young Americans Christian Academy follow RCPS closure decisions, according to the schools' officials.

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(Jan. 9, 7:59 p.m.) Governor Sonny Perdue, in coordination with Governor-elect Nathan Deal, issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency in anticipation of a severe winter storm that is expected to impact much of the state. According to a released statement, the executive order allows for state resources to be available for response and recovery activities, and calls for the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) / Office of Homeland Security to activate the state’s Emergency Operations Plan. GEMA / Homeland Security has activated the State Operations Center (SOC) to support the state in its response and recovery efforts to a severe weather system that is expected to begin impacting Georgia tonight through Tuesday.

Governor-Elect Nathan Deal canceled all nonessential Inaugural activities for Monday, Jan. 10. Neither the Prayer Breakfast at Mount Paran nor the Celebration at Philips Arena will be held.

The swearing-in ceremonies for all Georgia constitutional officers will still take place inside the state Capitol on the floor of the House of Representatives. Gov.-elect Deal encouraged the public to stay off the roads and watch the ceremony live on Georgia Public Broadcasting at 2:30 p.m.

You may also watch it streamed on the internet at http://www.dealinaugural.com/tv.php.

All tickets purchased for the Inaugural Celebration will be refunded via your method of payment, according to the released statement, which also requested ticket holders not to call

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 (Jan. 8, 8:03 p.m.) A wintry mix of several inches of snow and freezing rain could be headed towards Rockdale on Sunday. The National Weather Service issued a winter storm watch in effect for most of the state from Sunday evening through Monday evening.

Tonight should be mostly clear, with lows around 19 degrees Farenheit and northwest winds 5 to 15 mph.

On Sunday, expect to see increasing clouds, with highs in the mid-30s and northeast winds from 10 to 15 mph. 
Snow is likely in the evening until after midnight. Lows will be in the upper 20s, with northeast winds 10 to 20 mph. The chance of snow is near 100 percent. 

On Monday, the forecast calls for snow and freezing rain in the morning, changing to freezing rain. Sleet and rain are likely in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 30s with east winds 10 to 20 mph.  

 Precipitation is predicted to end by Tuesday, except in the north Georgia mountains.

Check back to www.rockdalenews.com for updates on school and county closings.

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(Jan. 7, 10:12 p.m.) Frozen precipitation is expected for late Sunday, with National Weather Service forecasters calling for widespread accumulations of 1-2 inches and up to 3 inches possible.

The weather service early Friday issued a report that calls for frozen precipitation along and north of a line running from La Grange to Monticello and Washington.

The forcast calls for a slight chance of snow after 1 p.m. Sunday, with a high of 38, but snow is likely Sunday night, with an 80 percent chance of precipitation and a low of 29. Monday, the weather service is calling for an 80 percent chance of freezing rain and sleet, with a high of 31.

Expect a high today of 55, and a high on Saturday of 45, with a low overnight of 31 today and of 20 on Saturday

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