Massive winter storm prompts disaster declaration and could stress Texas' electricity grid

[Cyber Liberty]

Massive winter storm prompts disaster declaration and could stress Texas' electricity grid
 by Megan Menchaca and Mitchell Ferman Feb. 12, 2021 Updated: 17 hours ago

Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration Friday afternoon for every county in Texas as a massive winter storm threatens to wreck havoc on the state's electricity grid, power lines and roads.

"Texas should heed the guidance of their local leaders and stay alert to changing weather conditions in their area," Abbott said in a press release.

The state’s power grid could see record-setting winter electricity demand from Texans trying to keep warm this weekend. That means the capacity of Texas’ power grid, most of which is run by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, will be put to the test. It is unclear whether this will result in rolling blackouts in Texas, or “rotating outages” as ERCOT calls system power outages.

More:  https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/12/texas-winter-weather/

=========================================================

Joe Bastardi was on Hannity's radio show yesterday, and said this is going to be a huge Natural Disaster story...

[Elderberry]

Texas Tribune by Megan Menchaca and Mitchell Ferman 2/12/2021

Gov. Greg Abbott urged Texans to stay alert as the National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings or watches for most of the state. Experts fear that electricity demand during the frigid temperatures could cause power outages.

State officials are urging Texans to stay home and minimize their use of electricity as a massive winter storm threatens to wreak havoc on the state's power grid and roads.

"Everybody in this state should have several collective goals over the next few days, one of which should be that we will not replicate what happened in Fort Worth," Gov. Greg Abbott said at a Saturday news conference, referring to Thursday's 133-car pileup on an iced-over interstate that left six dead.

"This will be probably more snow over a larger swath of land to a higher degree than ever before in Texas history," he added.

At the news conference, Abbott said he would seek a federal emergency declaration for the storm and planned to deploy National Guard troops to help find stranded travelers.

A day earlier, he issued a statewide disaster declaration for every county in the state and urged Texans to "heed the guidance of their local leaders and stay alert to changing weather conditions in their area."

The state’s power grid could see record-setting winter electricity demand from Texans trying to keep warm this weekend. That means the capacity of Texas’ power grid, most of which is run by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, will be put to the test. It is unclear whether this will result in rolling blackouts in Texas, or “rotating outages” as ERCOT calls system power outages.

More: https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/12/texas-winter-weather/

[mountaineer]

Some have pointed out that Biden's FEMA has done nothing, whereas under Trump, when they knew a big weather emergency (e.g., hurricane) was coming, they made preparations.

[catfish1957]

Some have pointed out that Biden's FEMA has done nothing, whereas under Trump, when they knew a big weather emergency (e.g., hurricane) was coming, they made preparations.

Yep...  A February 2021 Biden Freeze Death Count needs to be established and updated.He and his merry band of idiots have more important matters like pointless Kangaroo Shampeachment Trials.

[libertybele]

Prayers up for those Briefers in TX!  Stay safe and stay warm.   

[mystery-ak]

Prayers up for those Briefers in TX!  Stay safe and stay warm.   

We have a lot a Texans here at TBR...please stay safe!

[roamer_1]

Yep... We feel for ya Texas. 

Up in here we went 15 below for a while there... Had to rummage around and dig out my wool socks. 

[Bigun]

27 degrees here currently and dropping into the low teens by morning.  Single digits by Tuesday morning with about 9" of snow predicted over that period. Not supposed to rise above freezing again before Friday.

The power remains on, we have a good fireplace and plenty of wood should we need it.  All is well.

[thackney]

Grid operator requests energy conservation for system reliability
http://www.ercot.com/news/releases/show/225151
Feb. 14, 2021

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) is asking consumers and businesses to reduce their electricity use as much as possible Sunday, Feb. 14 through Tuesday, Feb. 16.

"We are experiencing record-breaking electric demand due to the extreme cold temperatures that have gripped Texas," said ERCOT President and CEO Bill Magness. "At the same time, we are dealing with higher-than-normal generation outages due to frozen wind turbines and limited natural gas supplies available to generating units. We are asking Texans to take some simple, safe steps to lower their energy use during this time."

Here are some tips to reduce electricity use:

- Turn down thermostats to 68-degrees.
- Close shades and blinds to reduce the amount of heat lost through windows.
- Turn off and unplug non-essential lights and appliances.
- Avoid using large appliances (i.e., ovens, washing machines, etc.).
- Businesses should minimize the use of electric lighting and electricity-consuming equipment as much as possible.
- Large consumers of electricity should consider shutting down or reducing non-essential production processes.

Given the prolonged, below-freezing temperatures, conservation measures should be implemented safely and within reason....




http://www.ercot.com/

[Night Hides Not]

27 degrees here currently and dropping into the low teens by morning.  Single digits by Tuesday morning with about 9" of snow predicted over that period. Not supposed to rise above freezing again before Friday.

The power remains on, we have a good fireplace and plenty of wood should we need it.  All is well.

Currently 17 degrees in Irving. The dog was begging to go outside, as my son and grandson were having a snowball fight.

Five minutes later, she was begging to go back inside...lol. Smart dog.

[PeteS in CA]

Rotating black-outs? Texas has Enviros that need to be put down?

[mystery-ak]

Weather Warnings here in Central Il...6-10inches of snow with wind chills -20

[libertybele]

Currently 17 degrees in Irving. The dog was begging to go outside, as my son and grandson were having a snowball fight.

Five minutes later, she was begging to go back inside...lol. Smart dog.

[mystery-ak]

Hey Texans keep us updated if you can.

[Right_in_Virginia]

Joe Bastardi
@BigJoeBastardi

currently 100k without power in Texas




8:08 PM · Feb 14, 2021·Twitter Web App

https://twitter.com/BigJoeBastardi/status/1361120106806456327

[Right_in_Virginia]

Joe Bastardi
@BigJoeBastardi

MOST SEVERE WINTER WEATHER ON RECORD IN DALLAS! ITS SNOWING AT. 10 DEGREES ABOVE 0!!! MODELS 6 HOURS OUT BUSTING BY 3-5 DEGREES. UNREAL



8:01 PM · Feb 14, 2021·Twitter Web App

https://twitter.com/BigJoeBastardi/status/1361118486123192321

[Bigun]

Hey Texans keep us updated if you can.

About 20 degrees out at 9 pm with a light dusting of snow on the ground. Power is on and all is well at present.

[catfish1957]

Kind of loss in this news of this cold weather event is the impact on the petrochemical industry.  Not quire sure if we are looking at impacts as severe as 1997, 1989, or 1983, but here are some projected low NWS low temperatures for the western core of the the industry along the central and western Gulf of Mexico...

NOLA...  25
Baton Rouge-16
Lafayette- 17
Lake Charles- 14
Beaumont-11
Houston- 12
Bay City-13
Corpus Christi- 17

These areas are 45% of the nation's refining capacity.  My experience is that these types of severe and long duration cold snaps will reek havoc on these plants.  Expect the price of gasoline to rise accordingly.

[catfish1957]

About 20 degrees out at 9 pm with a light dusting of snow on the ground. Power is on and all is well at present.

29, and starting to see a slight glazing on the lines and trees. Know of no power outages in our area.

[mystery-ak]

@Victoria33 has informed me that

Governor Abbott asks for federal aid with statewide disaster declaration, warns drivers to stay home

https://www.statesman.com/story/news/local/2021/02/13/abbott-asks-federal-aid-warns-texans-stay-home-conserve-power/4477397001/

[Idiot]

I'm west of DFW it's 6 degrees at 10 pm looking for a low close to zero.  We've had 6 inches plus of snow with drifts a couple of feet high in my yard.  It's brutal!

[Victoria33]

It's 8 degrees in Denton County which is north of Dallas about 30 miles at 11:52 pm, central time.  Weather guy says on Tuesday, it will be 0 degrees here.

Power outages are happening in this greater area of Denton County and Dallas County and Tarrant County (Fort Worth area).

We are okay at this time.  I expect people to die in the days of this week due to this weather.

[thackney]

ERCOT calls for rotating outages as extreme winter weather forces generating units offline
http://www.ercot.com/news/releases/show/225210
Feb. 15, 2021

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) entered emergency conditions and initiated rotating outages at 1:25 a.m. today.

About 10,500 MW of customer load was shed at the highest point. This is enough power to serve approximately two million homes.

Extreme weather conditions caused many generating units – across fuel types – to trip offline and become unavailable.

There is now over 30,000 MW of generation forced off the system....

[thackney]

20 degrees here south of Houston

So far the pipes have not frozen.  I filled extra tubs of water for the horses and cows and used an air compressor to push the water out of the barn.

[Elderberry]

Lost power around 2AM. 19 Deg. SE Houston Hobby Area