Atlanta and a Tornado...

We must have a 'thing' for Atlanta and bad weather! Or, perhaps we should quit going there in the Spring.... On April 15th, we drove to ATL with the girls to spend the night and go to Six Flags on Saturday, since we didn't get to go anywhere for Spring Break. I knew there was a potential for rain, but we decided to go anyway, hoping to have some fun.

About 2:30am Saturday morning, we awoke to Tornado Sirens. I forgot my glasses, as I was packing at the last minute Friday morning before I headed to work, and my contact lens case. As I hopped out of bed, I grabbed my contact lenses, which I placed in hotel cups full of saline and stuck them in so I could see the TV. Matthew turned on the TV and saw the red cell right on top of where we were staying. We got the girls up, put their shoes on, and ran down four flights of stairs.

Then, we heard police on their bullhorns outside, telling people to take cover that a tornado was in the area. It was scary to say the least! To our surprise, only two other people joined us in the stairwell, and they, like me, were from the Midwest and had seen firsthand, the aftermath of destruction left by a tornado. We were shocked there were no more people out of their rooms because the hotel was full of guests, many of whom were going to Talledega for the race.

The hotel NEVER ONCE notified people to take cover....no automated phone calls, no fire alarms pulled, NOTHING. I still am shocked and plan to call Hampton Inn, at some point...just have never gotten around to it. I cannot imagine the liability and lawsuits they'd have, if the hotel had been blown away, and they never took precautions to inform their guests of the impending danger.

Last time I was in ATL, was in 2008 for the SEC b-ball tournament. We'd just bought the Honda and drove it to the games. We were in the dome and everything started swaying....now, that was freaky! We heard load noises and then insulation started floating downward onto the court and the games were called off. We drove ALL that way and paid a lot of money, and we never got to see UK play b/c of the tornado!

Anyhow, the weather passed and we had fun at Six Flags on Saturday. As usual after a storm, it was sunny...just a bit windy, but we still had fun. So, I think I've concluded I'm done with ATL in the Spring.