A trucker hauling chemicals pulled into a strip mall in Georgia to wait out Hurricane Irma and woke up to find his truck had been booted and slapped with a large fine.
The trucker pulled into the strip mall off of Interstate 20 on Monday, September 11th in Decatur, Georgia.
According to 11 Alive Atlanta, Kevin Gray was hauling chemicals along I-20 when Hurricane Irma hit, bringing 40-50 mph winds and heavy rain to north Georgia.
The storm knocked out the traffic signals, so Gray decided to pull off of the road.
“I passed a truck on the side of the road, flipped over… I had to find some place to park,” said Gray.
He parked in a strip mall parking lot off of I-20 and Wesley Chapel and climbed into his sleeper berth to ride out the storm. When he awoke around 4 a.m. on Tuesday morning, he discovered his semi truck had been booted and slapped with stickers explaining he would be charged a $650 fine.
The parking lot had clearly posted signs, explaining the boot and fine policy for commercial vehicles, Gray said, but he believes a hurricane such as Irma should allow for an exception.
“I have to constantly think about me being out there on the road and how I can also put other people in danger. [If] I get into an accident… it can become a very serious situation,” Gray explained.
He believes he had no other choice but to pull over as soon as he could.
Gray contacted State Impound Authority of Atlanta, the private company employed by the strip mall to keep cars from parking in their lot, and explained the situation. The company responded by saying “we have rules and you still can’t park there, and you’re going to have to pay to leave,” remembered Gray.
“I think he understood, but I don’t think he really cared.”
Because Gray is an independent owner-operator, he had to pay the $650 fine out of pocket.
State Impound Authority of Atlanta declined to comment on the situation further.