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On Monday morning, with brutally cold wind chill dipping temperatures into the teens and no electricity in most areas, Houstonians woke up to heaps of snow outside their homes. There is a winter storm warning for the entire state of Texas. The winter storm warning for the Houston region has been extended by National Weather Service forecasters to 6 a.m. Thursday, as cold weather and the risk of more rain — freezing or otherwise — remain.
President Joe Biden approved Texas’ proclamation of an emergency disaster Sunday. According to a statement from the White House, the declaration orders federal help to supplement state and local storm response efforts.
Governor Greg Abbott increased the amount of resources available to local officials as the state faced hundreds of thousands of homes with potentially deadly power outages.
“Many power companies have been unable to generate power, whether it’s from coal, natural gas, or wind power,” Abbott said in a release.
To restore power supply, ERCOT and the PUC are working non-stop. The state has also deployed resources to help Texans without power and to help essential workers continue to perform their jobs. In the meantime, as state agencies work with private providers to restore power as quickly as possible, I encourage all Texans to continue to stay off the roads and preserve energy.
Due to the extremely low temperatures during the winter storm sweeping the state, the declaration is due to lower power supply and high demand.
ERCOT asked residents to close their blinds, unplug unused appliances, wait a few days for laundry, and wear warmer clothing, among other steps, to help conserve energy.
According to PowerOutage.us, which aggregates data from utilities across the country, at least 2.8 million customers across the state have lost power.
As requirements rose, Texas’ power grid experienced a system-wide failure. After the record-breaking energy use strained utilities beyond capacity, grid managers declared an emergency.
Because of multiple power generation plants that are offline, according to officials, outages across Texas could last for hours, even stretching into days. An estimated 75% of the power generation capacity of Texas is affected.
By reducing thermostats, Turner urged those still with electricity to conserve power so that the electric grid is not overwhelmed. In order to reduce usage, utility companies in the Houston area have shut off power in some areas.
He said Turner. “Otherwise, it could be considerably worse and this situation could be prolonged.”
According to the mayor, the power situation is of greater importance to seniors and those who are customers of critical care on the grid. He urged individuals, particularly relatives and neighbours, to check on seniors in their lives.
Through Tuesday morning, brutally cold wind chill readings of -10 to 10 degrees are likely. Residents are asked by officials to stay off the roads if they can.
Temperatures across all of SE Texas are currently below freezing. Most of the winter precipitation has moved out, but travel could be affected throughout the workweek with temperatures remaining below freezing and another winter storm probable on Wednesday.
Depending on the weather, major companies and schools are closed until Tuesday morning. ExxonMobil is closing its Baytown refinery, citing cold and natural gas shortages. The method, company officials said, could lead to the sites flaring.
The Homeland Security and Emergency Management Office is warning individuals that it is not pond-hockey cold while it is bitterly cold in the area. The freezing of lakes, ponds and other bodies of water may begin.
People were warned against trying to walk on them, saying that the ice would not be strong enough to support a person.
Public health officials in Harris County are hustling to distribute 8,400 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine after Monday’s facility storing them lost power.
