Many Iowans are doing all they can to stay indoors and avoid the extremely cold temperatures and icy roads. That includes ordering out.
Jenni Goforth is manager of Happy Joe’s in Cedar Rapids. “A lot of people, because they don’t want to go out, will order pizza,” Goforth said.
Weekday orders at the Cedar Rapids’ Happy Joe’s have doubled. That means more money for driver Mark White, but it also means he has to navagate snow and ice covered roads. White says he keeps a tight grip on the steering wheel.
“There’s just pot holes everywhere…they’ll bump you right into a snow drift,” White said. He says deliveries are taking about 20 minutes longer than usual because of the dangerous driving conditions. Happy Joe’s has closed early twice in the past few weeks because Goforth did not want her drivers on the ice covered roads.
“It’s always hard making that decision because we want to stay open…obviously it’s busy and it’s great money, but we don’t want to put (the drivers) at risk,” Goforth said.