State and local officials say they’re better prepared than they were five years ago when Winter Storm Uri blanketed the state, killing hundreds and leaving scores without power and water.
Nearly five years after Winter Storm Uri sparked widespread power outages and killed hundreds of Texans, officials and residents are once more girding for a round of severe winter weather that will blanket large parts of the state.
Dangerously cold temperatures from an arctic blast will descend upon the state beginning Friday morning, and with the cold come chances of wintry precipitation in the form of snow, sleet and freezing rain. That winter blast is expected to grip the state from Friday evening to early next week.
Officials don’t expect widespread power outages, though Texans could still see local power outages if ice or falling tree branches knock out power lines.
Officials this week have set about making preparations for the weather. Gov. Greg Abbott announced a series of steps state departments are taking that include working with local governments to update local warming center maps and monitor water and wastewater. State officials are also helping set up teams of firefighters, state patrol agents and the National Guard.
Additionally, crews with the Texas Department of Transportation began treating roadways on Wednesday to prevent them from accumulating ice, though state and local officials told Texans they should stay home during the worst of the winter weather if they can help it.
“If you don’t have to go outside, please don’t,” Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
Is the Texas grid ready for ice and cold?
Years after Uri dropped record amounts of snow onto the state, left millions of Texans without power and killed at least 246 people, officials say Texas is better prepared to handle winter weather.
Perhaps the most crucial part of that preparedness is the stability of the state’s electrical grid. The grid, managed by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, failed catastrophically during the February 2021 storm. Questions about whether the grid will hold up come up any time the state faces severe weather, hot or cold. Texans have grown particularly attentive to how the grid will hold up in a cold snap.
The grid is in better shape than it was in February 2021, state officials and energy experts have said. So far, the agency is projecting that Texas will have enough power to meet demand throughout the weekend.
“Based on expected weather conditions, ERCOT anticipates there will be sufficient generation to meet demand this winter,” the agency said in a statement.
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Photo Credit: A power substation in Northwest Austin during a winter storm on Feb. 3, 2022. State and local officials said on Wednesday they are prepared for this weekend’s expected winter storm. Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune
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