Power outages across Texas are worsening as some face a loss of electricity until Tuesday following a frigid winter storm that has gripped most of the Lone Star State.
A total of 3.8 million homes are without power as of Monday afternoon, a number that ballooned from 2 million in the morning. Local authorities, who are scrambling to get control of the situation, indicated that at least 190,000 customers in the Austin area may have to spend a full night in subzero temperatures without heat.
“The situation continues to worsen across TX and here in Austin,” said Jackie Sargent, the general manager of Austin Energy.
Bill Magness, the president and CEO of Electric Reliability Council of Texas, said, “Every grid operator and every electric company is fighting to restore power right now. Rotating outages will likely last throughout the morning and could be initiated until this weather emergency ends.”
Central Texas was slammed with half a foot of snow over the weekend in an unprecedented winter emergency that left many of its residents unprepared. Numerous Texas cities reported subzero temperatures on Monday morning, including minus 10 in Amarillo, minus 9 in Dalhart, minus 5 in Farwell, and minus 4 in Childress. Temperatures below zero have also been observed in Wichita Falls and San Angelo. The warmest weather in the state was in Brownsville, at 24 degrees.
Power providers have urged residents to keep their thermostats at 68 degrees or lower, turn off lights and other unneeded electric sources, avoid oven use, and close blinds to reduce heat loss.
Texans, many of whom have been without power for hours, have been largely left in the dark about when they can resume heating their homes.
“There is no definitive answer as to WHEN you will get power again,” KUT journalist Claire McInerney tweeted, citing a call with ERCOT authorities. “If it is a planned or unplanned outage, it might be off for a while.”
On Sunday, President Biden approved a Federal Emergency Declaration for all 254 counties in the state from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. The governor activated 34 warming centers throughout the state and deployed approximately 3,000 National Guard troops to mitigate damage.
Other Southern states have also experienced power outages, according to PowerOutage.US. Louisiana had roughly 116,000 houses in the dark, Mississippi had 61,000 families without electricity, and Alabama had 11,000 outages as of Monday afternoon. Power problems have also been observed in Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina as the cold front persists.
The city of Austin, which at one point was experiencing a web outage, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
