Peachtree Road
This might not be a good time to drive through Buckhead. Besides the water main break on Peachtree a bit north of Collier, a section of Peacthree near West Paces Ferry has also been shut down due to some guy up on a crane. So, besides Peachtree being totally screwed up, the subsequent traffic shutdown in the area is going to be further worsened by the fact that everyone’s looking up.
Besides the traffic impact, this situation is fun just by being so ridiculous. Crane dude, at the time of this writing (2:30ish) has been up there for around 46 hours, and the strategy of the APD appears to be a really sucky seige. They’re trying to keep him awake by blasting an air horn at him, moving a mechanical bucket up and down the crane arm near where he is, and buzzing him with a helicopter, in the hopes that he’ll eventually come down to get some sleep. “But what if he gets hungry?” you might ask. Don’t worry, fair citizen, your faithful servants and protectors have considered this situation and offered the guy food. That’s right, they’re trying to feed him. He’s refused so far, though, so maybe he’ll get hungry or thirsty at some point.
Watching the news videos has been amusing in a morbid sort of way. The guy looks like he’s trying to dismantle part of the crane, and the cops keep playing with the bucket, keeping it near the guy as he moves along the arm. The police negotiators, though they refuse to climb out onto the crane arm, are often close enough to this guy that they could just grab him. He’s allegedly armed with a knife, but who cares? They’re in full riot gear. I think they could take him. Or just blow him off with a helicopter and onto the air bag they set up below. Or just shoot him down. He’s a murder suspect in Florida, so there’s at least some chance that he’ll be brought down and then put to death by the state. Obviously I’m not the guy who is or needs to be calling the shots, but it really seems like there are better options in this situation.