ATLANTA — As sub-freezing temperatures disable cars and leave drivers stranded, the operation designed to help stranded motorists is slowly rebuilding to a 24-hour operation.
Due to staffing shortages, the Georgia Department of Transportation’s Highway Emergency Response Operators (HERO) temporarily suspended overnight patrols. Now, the manager of HERO said he is on track to resume 24-hour day operations sometime this spring, if not earlier.
Dondre Alexander is one of the new HEROs patrolling metro interstates. Hired just a few months ago, Alexander is a former U.S. Marine who wanted a job serving people in need.
“A lot of people think when we show up, we won’t be able to do the things we do, but we quickly prove them wrong,” Alexander said.
From changing tires to providing fuel to administering first aid as traffic zips by on metro interstates, HEROs do it at no cost to the driver they’re rescuing.
At least 125 HERO units must operate 24 hours a day. Thanks in part to the COVID-19 pandemic, the numbers dwindled to a low 60 units but are on the way up again to 90 HEROs.
The manager of the operation says the difficult part is keeping good people.
“It’s a little bit more involved than they thought it was,” Jason Josey, a HERO, said. “It’s a lot more dangerous and unforgiving to mistakes and that sometimes is enough to cause a little bit of walk away.”
If not before, the HEROs are on pace to return to overnight patrols in the spring.
Dondre Alexander said while the job is far more of a challenge than he expected, there’s the satisfaction of rescuing desperate drivers who can only sit as traffic zips by.
“A thank you or seeing a smile on their face goes a long way,” Alexander said.
Anyone interested in a career with the HEROs, head here for more information.