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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 24, 2000, 1:00 p.m. Barnes Place Weathers Winter Storm
BARNES PLACE, ATLANTA, GA--Just days before the country descends upon Atlanta for Super Bowl XXXIV, a winter storm left over 500,000 people without power on Sunday. Rain and freezing temperatures combined to coat the city and North Georgia in layers of ice. Upper elevations experienced both snow and ice. Barnes Place made it through the storm perfectly with only a momentary power loss in the early morning hours on Sunday. The house and grounds suffered no damage. "Since our VCR and TV program themselves, we hardly even noticed," said Timothy State, director of ambiance and entertainment. Comatose Barbie continues to rest peacefully as her machines worked through the night, uninterrupted. Director of Catering and Guest Relations Anthony Dornacher continues to bottle VM Juice, 100% Weeping Elvis Juice. "We've been checking on the flock of flamingos in the Flamingo Grove," added State. "They're doing just fine, and look quite dapper in their new IKB fashions." "Even if we had experienced an interruption in power," said Dornacher, "We are prepared, and have been prepared for quite some time now. Our Y2K Disaster Drill in October and the adjustments we made in the months that followed have us set for just about anything." If you know of anyone in the Atlanta area who is without power, heat, hair dryers, cocktails, or other necessities of life, Barnes Place is open and operating as an emergency shelter during this state of emergency. Georgia Governor Roy Barnes has declared "Disaster Areas" in 20 counties (including several in Metro Atlanta) across North Georgia. As of this morning, over 170,000 people were still without power. Schools throughout the area are closed. While Dornacher had to report to the office today, State's office is without power, and so a "Snow Day" has been declared for him. Currently, precipitation in the form of snow is falling from the sky. Cold temperatures and moisture is expected through next weekend. However, daytime temperatures are expected to rise above freezing. Hurricane Opal in 1995 was the last time Georgia experienced such widespread power outages. It took 6 days for crews to restore power to everyone. --END-- |