Texas Winter 2020-2021

[SoupBone]

After all of this crap, I will start a GoFundMe to build Wxman57's "Wall of Impenetrable Heat" that will be manned by large fire breathing dragons, and molten lava creatures. I love cold weather, and the occasional flurry or light snow, but this crap is ridiculous. I guess it's why I visit Colorado for skiing but love coming back home.

[Iceresistance]

VERY INTENSE 2-3 inch per hour snowfall rate being picked up on radar on I-20 east of Midland, TX

[Iceresistance]

After all of this crap, I will start a GoFundMe to build Wxman57's "Wall of Impenetrable Heat" that will be manned by large fire breathing dragons, and molten lava creatures. I love cold weather, and the occasional flurry or light snow, but this crap is ridiculous. I guess it's why I visit Colorado for skiing but love coming back home.

Don't worry, Temperatures are going to be in the 60s next week with the help of Heat Miser (Wxman57) . . .

Love the cold, but there is always to a certain point where it's no longer fun anymore.

[Portastorm]

Has anybody figured out yet how some areas get rolling blackouts and others permanent blackouts. I was lucky to get a brief 1.5hr window but other Austin areas east and south have not been turned on and their water lines are bursting. After mine came on for a minute the governor was talking on kxan news and said within 2 hours everything is ok and those others will get theres back on. Nope instead within 2hrs mine went out and theirs stayed off.

Around here at least it's if you're sharing grid with essential service, like a hospital. I am in Windsor Park and 33 hours without power. A friend close in the newer Mueller district has had power, probably because they share with Dell Children's hospital.

Yes I get it that if you share a grid with a hospital or treatment plant your power never goes off. But I thought a rolling blackout for the rest of us meant that the power would be cutoff temporarily each hour for maybe up to an hour and then back on again for an hour as another area took its sacrifice. Instead they just flip the switch off and never rotated.

After reading some news articles about this debacle, I think what happened was Austin Energy (along with other service providers statewide) were in the process of doing their rolling blackouts and at a certain stage they were told by ERCOT that they couldn't get any additional power so the whole rolling blackout thing got stuck. Service providers shed and add loads (customer electricity) during the process and it's kinda a give and take system for the state. Well, when a number of natural gas facilities froze up ... the additional planned power to help the cycle along didn't happen. So the system broke down ... and those without power stayed without power.

[utpmg]

Has anybody figured out yet how some areas get rolling blackouts and others permanent blackouts. I was lucky to get a brief 1.5hr window but other Austin areas east and south have not been turned on and their water lines are bursting. After mine came on for a minute the governor was talking on kxan news and said within 2 hours everything is ok and those others will get theres back on. Nope instead within 2hrs mine went out and theirs stayed off.

Around here at least it's if you're sharing grid with essential service, like a hospital. I am in Windsor Park and 33 hours without power. A friend close in the newer Mueller district has had power, probably because they share with Dell Children's hospital.

Yes I get it that if you share a grid with a hospital or treatment plant your power never goes off. But I thought a rolling blackout for the rest of us meant that the power would be cutoff temporarily each hour for maybe up to an hour and then back on again for an hour as another area took its sacrifice. Instead they just flip the switch off and never rotated.

Yeah, that's why I wish they'd stop calling it "rolling". My understanding has been Austin is not allowed to get most people back online by ERCOT rules. All I know is I'm glad I have a lot of camping gear.

[cheezyWXguy]

After all of this crap, I will start a GoFundMe to build Wxman57's "Wall of Impenetrable Heat" that will be manned by large fire breathing dragons, and molten lava creatures. I love cold weather, and the occasional flurry or light snow, but this crap is ridiculous. I guess it's why I visit Colorado for skiing but love coming back home.

Don't worry, Temperatures are going to be in the 60s next week with the help of Heat Miser (Wxman57) . . .

Love the cold, but there is always to a certain point where it's no longer fun anymore.

I love this weather, I can’t get enough of it. But what I can’t stand is the strain it puts on our electric infrastructure. Thinking I’ll move to Colorado at some point.

[Ntxw]

VERY INTENSE 2-3 inch per hour snowfall rate being picked up on radar on I-20 east of Midland, TX

This is the next system. It has more moisture to work with than the last system.

[Iceresistance]

After all of this crap, I will start a GoFundMe to build Wxman57's "Wall of Impenetrable Heat" that will be manned by large fire breathing dragons, and molten lava creatures. I love cold weather, and the occasional flurry or light snow, but this crap is ridiculous. I guess it's why I visit Colorado for skiing but love coming back home.

Don't worry, Temperatures are going to be in the 60s next week with the help of Heat Miser (Wxman57) . . .

Love the cold, but there is always to a certain point where it's no longer fun anymore.

I love this weather, I can’t get enough of it. But what I can’t stand is the strain it puts on our electric infrastructure. Thinking I’ll move to Colorado at some point.

What is going on right now was WORSE that expected, they did not expect prolonged cold at all & the Power Stations to freeze up . . .

[Iceresistance]

VERY INTENSE 2-3 inch per hour snowfall rate being picked up on radar on I-20 east of Midland, TX

This is the next system. It has more moisture to work with than the last system.

https://i.imgur.com/bprnF3g.gif

Just noticed 3 radar stations down in Central Texas?

[utweather]

Around here at least it's if you're sharing grid with essential service, like a hospital. I am in Windsor Park and 33 hours without power. A friend close in the newer Mueller district has had power, probably because they share with Dell Children's hospital.

Yes I get it that if you share a grid with a hospital or treatment plant your power never goes off. But I thought a rolling blackout for the rest of us meant that the power would be cutoff temporarily each hour for maybe up to an hour and then back on again for an hour as another area took its sacrifice. Instead they just flip the switch off and never rotated.

After reading some news articles about this debacle, I think what happened was Austin Energy (along with other service providers statewide) were in the process of doing their rolling blackouts and at a certain stage they were told by ERCOT that they couldn't get any additional power so the whole rolling blackout thing got stuck. Service providers shed and add loads (customer electricity) during the process and it's kinda a give and take system for the state. Well, when a number of natural gas facilities froze up ... the additional planned power to help the cycle along didn't happen. So the system broke down ... and those without power stayed without power.

The President approved state of emergency 2 days ago. Can Austin Energy tap federal emergency energy access and sidestep ERCOT?

[Ntxw]

VERY INTENSE 2-3 inch per hour snowfall rate being picked up on radar on I-20 east of Midland, TX

This is the next system. It has more moisture to work with than the last system.

https://i.imgur.com/bprnF3g.gif

Just noticed 3 radar stations down in Central Texas?

It's possible as without power they would not likely be able to operate.

[ElectricStorm]

Just had our 4th coldest temperature on record here north of Tulsa. Coming in at -13F this morning. Back up to 5F currently

[wxman22]

Im getting more concerned with the potential for a major ice storm in central, and east/southeast Texas tonight.Models are coming in more aggressive with ice accumulations.And theirs already a lot of people without power and unfortunately there will be more with this storm.

[jasons2k]

After all of this crap, I will start a GoFundMe to build Wxman57's "Wall of Impenetrable Heat" that will be manned by large fire breathing dragons, and molten lava creatures. I love cold weather, and the occasional flurry or light snow, but this crap is ridiculous. I guess it's why I visit Colorado for skiing but love coming back home.

Amen to that. Last week -- I posted either here or on the local forum 'Be careful what you wish for. It's all fun and games until the power goes out.'

We've been lucky so far but I am betting we lose it in tonight's storm. The Ice Man cometh....

[Iceresistance]

Radar is picking up a strange MCV near Lubbock, TX . . .

[SoupBone]

After all of this crap, I will start a GoFundMe to build Wxman57's "Wall of Impenetrable Heat" that will be manned by large fire breathing dragons, and molten lava creatures. I love cold weather, and the occasional flurry or light snow, but this crap is ridiculous. I guess it's why I visit Colorado for skiing but love coming back home.

Amen to that. Last week -- I posted either here or on the local forum 'Be careful what you wish for. It's all fun and games until the power goes out.'

We've been lucky so far but I am betting we lose it in tonight's storm. The Ice Man cometh....

Some of my friends in The Woodlands lost power in the initial rolling blackout and it still hasn't returned yet. So far, the forecast seems to affect more areas to the north, but who knows if that holds or not. One saving grace might be that the full sun today has completely removed all ice on the lines and trees in my neighborhood (NW Houston), so we'd be basically starting fresh again for the lines.

[bubba hotep]

VERY INTENSE 2-3 inch per hour snowfall rate being picked up on radar on I-20 east of Midland, TX

This is the next system. It has more moisture to work with than the last system.

https://i.imgur.com/bprnF3g.gif

Overall, guidance looks good but will depend on ratios and who changes over to ice. Not as juiced as it looked earlier in the week but many will probably see more qpf, esp N & E.

[bubba hotep]

Im getting more concerned with the potential for a major ice storm in central, and east/southeast Texas tonight.Models are coming in more aggressive with ice accumulations.And theirs already a lot of people without power and unfortunately there will be more with this storm.

Add Central & N. Louisiana to that list. Looks like a significant ice storm for all those areas.

[bubba hotep]

16z HRRR looks good for everyone north of I-20. Also, precipitation on radar looks to be tracking a bit south of what that run is showing.

[Ntxw]

Well, I might be one of the lucky ones here, never lost power even though I'm in the countryside, I have CVEC (Canadian Valley) as the one who supplies power to my home . . .

I feel really bad for those who don't have power, this is the Storm of the Century.

Normally it's either extreme cold or extreme snow & usually rolling blackouts are not needed, but this is a extreme case of both extreme cold & snow & rolling blackouts are needed to prevent overloading . . .

Final cost on the local and state economy will be in the billions if not tens of billions. Probably up there with the big hurricanes. Commerce has largely halted as well as many businesses losing power. No doubt the the most expensive cold snap in state history.