Faced With Criticism, Atlanta Mayor Slams NYC Snow Response In Tweet
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The mayor of Atlanta slammed New York City's snow removal efforts this week, after a New Yorker mocked the response in Atlanta to a snowstorm that amounted to 3 inches.
Edward H. Ladson of New York, who describes himself on Twitter as a political, financial and sports analyst, sent a tweet to the Big Tigger Show on radio station V103 Atlanta as the station hosted Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed Tuesday afternoon.
@BigTiggerShow Tell @KasimReed that the NYC are rolling on the floor at you ATL guys. IT'S JUST SNOW!!! @V103Atlanta
— Edward H Ladson (@EdwardHLadson) January 28, 2014
In response, Reed took New York to task for the city's snow response.
@EdwardHLadson @BigTiggerShow @V103Atlanta Considering NYC's most recent snow response, they may want to save their laughter.
— Kasim Reed (@KasimReed) January 28, 2014
A winter storm paralyzed Atlanta and the Deep South Tuesday, even though it amounted only to about 3 inches. At one point, traffic in Atlanta was so bad that security guards and office doormen took to the streets to direct cars amid a cacophony of blaring horns, CBS News reported.
Students camped out in schools or on buses, and commuters abandoned cars along the highway to seek shelter in churches or even grocery stores after a rare snowstorm left thousands across the South frozen in their tracks, CBS News reported.
"A lot of people" were still stranded in their cars on the highways more than 24 hours after a winter storm slammed the city, Reed told CBS News.
Atlanta city officials had earlier said they had learned their lessons from a January 2011 ice storm that brought the city to its knees. But chaos still erupted, according to published reports.
Reed said on Twitter Wednesday morning that crews were working diligently to salt and sand roadways. He added: "We know you want to get home, and we are going to work all day until you can return safely." Twenty hours before, he offered this message on Twitter: "Atlanta, we are ready for the snow."
Last week, New York City was socked with a snowstorm that dumped a lot more than 3 inches of snow. Central Park recorded 7.6 inches in the Jan. 21 storm, while some parts of the city saw 11 inches.
In the wake of the storm, Mayor Bill de Blasio was hit with complaints when some Upper East Side roads remained a mess 24 hours after the snowstorm – leaving traffic snarled and pavement treacherously slippery.
"Some of the work wasn't good enough and the reports that I received about the Upper East Side and then saw for myself caused me to say, 'We have to do better, right then and there, we have to do better,' and we have to do better going forward," de Blasio said three days after the storm.
Some areas of Staten Island also still had snow-covered streets, three days after the storm.
The controversy erupted into allegations of political favoritism by some New Yorkers, since major streets in Brooklyn were plowed right away. An image of two maps that made the rounds on social media last week – with one showing Upper East Side blocks where the plows were no-shows, and the other showing that the blocks were "red" districts that voted for de Blasio's Republican opponent for mayor.
Reed did not specify whether he was referring to that controversy in his tweet. But other Twitter users took him to task for his comment about snow removal efforts in New York.
@KasimReed @EdwardHLadson @BigTiggerShow @V103Atlanta You can't throw shade at NY when you repeated the same mistake twice... ice storm 2011
— Dimpleface (@WhatStaceySaid) January 29, 2014
Ladson also took Reed to task for the 2011 storm, and defended Mayor de Blasio.
@WhatStaceySaid @KasimReed @BigTiggerShow for 2014 DeBlasio was just sworn in & for 2011 you can't compare thundersnow to your snow.
— Edward H Ladson (@EdwardHLadson) January 29, 2014
The timing of when things would clear in Atlanta was uncertain Wednesday, because temperatures there were not expected to be above freezing for very long, meaning the roads may not have a chance to thaw.
"I'm not thinking about a grade right now," Reed said when asked about the city's response. "I'm thinking about getting people out of their cars."
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