The scene on the Downtown Connector Wednesday evening looked more like a disaster movie than an Atlanta commute. Slow-moving thunderstorms dumped nearly three inches of rain in under an hour across downtown and midtown, overwhelming storm drains and sending floodwaters surging across the interstate near Baker Street.
George Brathwaite was sitting in his car on the opposite side of the highway when he spotted a woman stranded on the roof of her rapidly flooding vehicle. His wife, Mary, urged him to help. "She was like, 'Go get her! Go get her!'" Brathwaite told reporters. An Army veteran with service in Iraq, he didn't hesitate. He waded through the murky floodwaters and carried the terrified driver to safety on his back.
"The car was almost floating down the highway," Brathwaite said. "It's fight or flight."
Minutes later, a Georgia Department of Transportation worker cleared a clogged drain, and water levels began dropping. The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department confirmed crews responded to multiple stranded vehicles near West Peachtree Street but found all occupants had safely evacuated before their arrival.
Traffic was completely blocked from 5 p.m. until just before 6:30 p.m. The flooding also trapped vehicles on North Avenue and along Peachtree Street in midtown. Weeks of dry weather likely contributed to the chaos. Storm drains had become clogged with debris, limiting runoff capacity. More storms are expected through Memorial Day weekend.