As Hurricane Helene approaches the area, DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond has repeatedly emailed inaccurate information about county operations.
The article stated: "No school closures have been announced in DeKalb County."
Yet, hours before the CEO's first email, the school system had announced on Wednesday afternoon that schools would be closed for two days.
"In response to the projected severe weather conditions caused by Hurricane Helene, Superintendent Dr. Devon Q. Horton has announced that all schools within the DeKalb County School District (DCSD) will be closed on Thursday, September 26, and Friday, September 27. This closure includes all school-based, district-wide, extracurricular, and athletic events," said a statement from the school district.
Subsequent emails from the CEO's office on Thursday afternoon and evening failed to correct the error about school closings. One mailing was headlined "Hurricane Helene causes closings throughout DeKalb County," but it did not include any information about any closures of any type.
Meanwhile, with no notice to the public, the county cancelled this week's residential garbage collections normally scheduled for Thursday. No press release was been issued regarding the decision, nor was anything posted on the Sanitation Department's web site. One resident who called the county's 311 number was told that this week's Thursday residential sanitation collection will take place on Saturday.
Garbage containers placed curbside on Thursday morning by residents unaware of the change were likely to become projectiles as Hurricane Helene passes through north Georgia on Thursday night.
The ineffective messaging came as Thurmond serves the final months of his term as DeKalb County CEO. Lorraine Cochran-Johnson will replace him in the position in 2025.
