Wednesday night, February 1, Austin City Council Member Paige Ellis tweeted an email sent from Austin Energy to the mayor and City Council, which included some updates on the utility’s efforts to restore power.
The email indicated that Austin Energy had 85 crews working on the issue, with 32 crews from other utilities helping following a mutual aid call from the utility. It also said that Houston-based CenterPoint Energy had crews joining the effort “as soon as possible.”
The outages could last until 6 p.m. Friday, February 3, to be fully restored.
Ellis said she spoke with Austin Energy General Manager Jackie Sargent, who told her that they have to prioritize critical need, like hospitals, and large outages to get the power back on to the most people possible.
Downed Trees a Problem
Downed trees are a major concern in Austin and a cause of the outages. The Texas Department of Insurance has released information for residents on how to deal with damage incurred by falling tree limbs.
Austinites are reporting fallen branches and damaged property as overnight freezing rain moved through the city.
Shane ScottIf a tree limb hits your car or home, TDI is asking folks to take pictures of the damage before performing repairs, contacting insurance after making temporary repairs, and saving all receipts for reimbursement.
More information can be found by calling TDI at 800-252-3439.
UPDATE: 10:45 a.m., Wednesday, February 1:
Austin Energy issued a statement regarding the numerous power outages impacting the residents. In it, it said that crews are driving through icy roadways and working with frozen equipment, adding that it is not possible to give an estimated power restoration times due to these conditions.
“Once AE is able to assess the extent of the damage and the safety of the employees and customers, AE will be able to provide an estimated restoration time,” the statement reads. “Austin Energy crews are prioritizing power restoration to the greatest number of customers in the least amount of time.”
Austin Energy’s statement concluded that because of the over 130,000 reported outages and the severity of the winter storm, the “utility is requesting mutual aid assistance from other agencies to assist in power restoration,” according to the statement.
Original story:
The 2023 Texas freeze started slowly in Austin as a mild inconvenience as many public schools canceled after-school programs on Monday, January 30. By midweek, persistent low temperatures and intermittent storms are giving city residents flashbacks to 2021’s Winter Storm Uri.
Freezing rain overnight in Central Texas has left tens of thousands without power and closed some essential services in Austin.
According to the Austin Energy outage map, more than 125,000 people serviced by the utility are without power in Austin on Wednesday, February 1. There are more than 450 outages in total.
The utility says that ice is taking down tree branches and power lines, and that icy road conditions are causing repair delays. They estimate that some customers could be without power for 12-24 hours.
MySA has reached out to Austin Energy for an update on the outages in the city.
As for driving conditions, TxDOT is asking people in Central Texas to stay off the roads for the time being. Those who need to travel can check road conditions at drivetexas.org.
Public transportation has taken a hit as well. CapMetro shut down at 9 p.m. Tuesday night, February 31, and is closed for service on Wednesday. CapMetro will monitor conditions for Thursday, February 2, and provide an update.
Austin ISD and nearly all surrounding public school districts are closed on Wednesday. Austin ISD says it is monitoring conditions and will provide an update for Thursday later today.