By Maggie Rodriguez
Staff Writer
As the rest of the country experiences freezing temperatures due to a distorted polar vortex, California has managed to escape the trend all together.
Not long after taking the Midwest by storm, the polar vortex brought southern states to a halt last Tuesday following a snow and ice storm.
CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller explained how, when functioning properly, the polar vortex, which is a circulation of strong upper-level winds that surround the North Pole, helps keep the cold air locked in the Artic regions
“[However] , this vortex can become distorted and dip much farther south than you would normally find it, allowing cold air to spill southward,” said Miller.
According to CNN.com, in Alabama, the weather forced more than 5,000 kids to spend Tuesday night in school buildings.
KTLA correspondent Lynnette Moreno said that more 2,000 cars were left on the roads in Atlanta creating gridlock on the streets.
“Cars where stuck to the road, frozen over with ice,” said Moreno
Public officials in Georgia were singled out by its residents, who are having a difficult time understanding why the state was so ill-equipped.
In a news conference on Jan.29, two days after the storm, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal, apologized to the people,
“I accept responsibility [for] the fact that we did not make [preparations] early enough to avoid these consequences,” said Deal.
Three years ago, an ice storm shut down Atlanta for four days, due to a lack of equipment. Since then the city has purchased the proper equipment, however the gridlock on Tuesday, Jan. 28, made it hard for workers to use much of the equipment on the road.
At least 10 people have been killed in weather related accidents.
Both Georgia and Alabama’s governors have declared a state of emergency.
This strange weather is something Kern County residents are not unfamiliar with. Given the County’s large agricultural community, it’s no surprise farmers and field workers aren’t fond of extremely cold winters.
Field worker, Hilda Ramirez, 44, said that although she looks forward to winter every year she simply can’t afford it.
“If it gets too cold the crops get ruined and that means no work. At least during the summer I work every day,” said Ramirez.
According to The Kern County Department of Agriculture annual report, Kern County produces over 50 percent of the country’s agriculture; it’s also a primary source of income for many.
A 19-year- old sociology major Ana Salgado 19, said she knows a lot of people whose jobs depend on agriculture. “If something like that happened here, it would not only devastate local families but California’s economy as a whole,” said Salgado.