Hundreds of evacuees seek shelter in metro Atlanta ahead of Hurricane Milton

HENRY COUNTY, Ga. — Hundreds of Hurricane Milton evacuees are on their way to or already at hotels, shelters, and RV parks in metro Atlanta.

Channel 2′s Audrey Washington spoke with evacuees at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Henry County on Tuesday.

“We are so grateful that the Atlanta Motor Speedway opened up their facility to allow evacuees to come and be safe,” said Kelli Irons of Riverview, Florida.

She said it took her and her husband eight hours to make it from West Florida to Georgia.

Irons said though she is grateful to be safe in Georgia, she is concerned about her neighbors who did not evacuate.

“It was madness, crazy,” said Irons.

She says the main concern now is the loss of life.

“We have a neighbor who has MS and she did not evacuate,” Irons said tearfully.

Audrey Siegler and her daughter Tina used laughter to make it through the difficult evacuation.

“We don’t have any utensils, so you know what I had to do? Use my finger,” Siegler explained to Washington.

Siegler said she and her daughter left the Villages of Florida on Monday, but when they arrived in Henry County overnight, there were no rooms available at the local hotels.

As a result, they had to sleep in their car.

“Blankets, pillows, that’s our clothes right there and some cookies. Everything you need to make it,” Siegler laughed.

By Tuesday afternoon, a hotel room became available. Siegler said she’ll stay in Georgia until the hurricane moves through West Florida.

“It’s a hard decision to make, you know should we stay or should we go, and I think we made the right decision,” Siegler explained.