Texas winter weather: Power grid will hold, Gov. Abbott says

AUSTIN, Texas - Gov. Greg Abbott made a promise on Monday saying the power grid will hold, as some of the coldest temperatures of the year move into Central Texas this week.

In the State Operations Center at DPS Headquarters, the change in weather is being monitored. Governor Greg Abbott was briefed on how state and local agencies were placed one step below full activation. A state of readiness, he urged all residents to follow.

MORE STORIES:

• Texas winter weather: ERCOT issues weather watch for Feb. 19-21
• Texas winter weather: Gov. Abbott gives update on preparation, response

What they're saying:

"If people are not paying attention to it, they're going to be shocked by what's going to happen over the next few hours and the next few days," said Gov. Abbott.

Bitter cold, for the past week, has frozen the Midwest. The forecast is for extreme cold temperatures to sink deep into Texas starting Tuesday, Feb. 18.

"When temperatures get that cold. Lives are at risk," said Gov. Abbott.

Is the power grid ready for winter weather?

What they're saying:

ERCOT, which manages the power grid, is ready, according to CEO Pablo Vegas.

"We expect to have adequate supply to meet demand during this cold weather event," said Vegas. 

Vegas and PUC Chairman Thomas Gleeson also pointed out that power generators, fueled by natural gas, have back up supplies on site.

"I can report that no one has expressed any concerns about the winter cold. The generators have all confirmed that they have an adequate supply of fuel. The transmission distribution utilities have cut back thousands of miles of vegetation to mitigate the impact of any falling trees or any ice. If that were to occur," said Texas PUC Chairman Thomas Gleeson.

It was also noted new battery storage locations are in place. They can quickly be online.

"That's what helps us to keep that reliability expectation high as we get through this event," said Vegas.

Why you should care:

In case of local outages, warming centers are being prepared across the state. 

"There's every reason to be 100% confident the power grid is going to be able to withstand this challenge," said Gov. Abbott.

Emergency management Chief Nim Kidd brought up one other fail safe every driver should have.

"If you find yourself out driving around and stranded on the side of the road in these ultra cold conditions, don't forget, on the back of your Texas driver's license is an 800 number. That number is 1-800-525-5555. That will be answered by the Texas Department of Public Safety. And if you're stranded there and need help, we have resources that are ready to come and get you and assist you to either getting home or into one of those warming centers," said Chief Kidd.

TxDOT started prepping roads in Central Texas this past weekend. Lines in the pavement from the treatment mix could be seen during the Monday morning rush hour. 

To the west, TxDOT crews were placed to address wildfires with other state resources, and placed in southeast Texas for flash flooding. Extreme measures for extreme weather.

"So our message to motorists is to take precautions and closely monitor the conditions in the areas that you are in," said Marc Williams with TxDOT.

Along with the additional measures in place now, compared to the winter storm in 2021, the other big difference is the cold back then lasted more than a week. And the rebound from the weather event that’s coming this week should start by Saturday, Feb. 22.