Southern Hospitality: Home Depot, Chick-Fil-A and Others Open Doors to Snow-Stranded DriversAs a snowstorm turned Georgia and Alabama into a scene out of a zombie movie, businesses lent a helping hand.
ByKate Taylor•
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
It only took a few inches of snow to leave thousands of drivers stranded across the South, as inaccurate weather predictions and lack of planning led to backups lasting hours in Alabama and Georgia. Thankfully, there were businesses willing to extend some Southern hospitality to the marooned drivers.
Unspeakably horrible commute stretches into 16th hour. Some slept at a CVS.#atlweatherhttp://t.co/VxtHY6PX36pic.twitter.com/9f0F22RH5x
— AJC (@ajc)January 29, 2014
Motorists, including parents attempting to pick their children up from school, buses full of students, diabetics and one woman whogave birth in the back of her car, were stuck – many overnight – without food, water or shelter.
With emergency vehicles struggling to reach those in need, individuals and businesses took it upon themselves to help in any way possible.
People broke out the lawn chairs in Home Depot last night in Atlanta.pic.twitter.com/WxmtT5U5g6
— Everything Georgia (@GAFollowers)January 29, 2014
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瞿家得宝(Home Depot)ickly turned a number of its stores into shelters on Tuesday night. The Atlanta-based company kept26 stores openall night long across Alabama and Georgia.
A big shoutout to@Publixduring this#atlweather! Closed, but opened doors for bathroom, food, shelter for Mom & Ipic.twitter.com/iAu28eQQKH
— Mallory O'Brien (@mallory_obrien)January 29, 2014
Grocery stores, includingPublixandKroger, had plenty of floor-space, as uncomfortable as it may be, to offer to drivers stuck overnight, along with much needed food. Stores reopened in the storm to provide bathroom, food and shelter. CVS and Target also offered opened their doors to fatigued and hungry drivers.
Any#TracFanaticsstuck on the road? All#Georgiastores are offering#free#coffee,#cappuccinoand#hotchocolateall night. Stay warm!
— RaceTrac (@RaceTrac)January 29, 2014
连锁店如菲尔和便利店RaceTrac offered food to motorists stuck for hours in the cold. A Chick-Fil-A outside of Birmingham, Ala. handed out hundreds of sandwiches for free along the highway, while RaceTrac is offered free coffee, cappuccino and hot chocolate in all Georgia stores up until 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
While the weather outside may be frightful, it's nice to see businesses willing to extend some Southern hospitality when communities need it the most.
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