Roads are clear, parks are open and the worst of the arctic cold snap that hit Central Texas this week is likely over, Austin officials said at a Jan. 16 press conference.
“It looks like the worst is behind us,” Mayor Kirk Watson said.
By the numbers
The daytime high of 24 degrees Fahrenheit on Jan. 15 marked the coldest daytime temperature in Austin since 1990, according to the National Weather Service. The nighttime low dipped to 16 degrees, breaking the previous record of 19 degrees set in 1944.
Austin’s warming shelters housed over 400 people the night of Jan. 14 and a record-breaking 632 people the night of Jan. 15.
The details
The city’s daytime and overnight warming shelters will continue to stay open until Wednesday, Jan. 17. Residents can register to stay at a shelter at the One Texas Center at 505 Barton Springs Road, Austin, from 5-8 p.m. Anyone needing shelter after 8 p.m. can call 311 or 512-974-2000 and will be picked up within an hour.
Ken Snipes, Austin Homeland Security and Emergency Management director, recommended anyone experiencing no water coming out of the faucet or low water pressure check their pipes. Information on how to thaw frozen pipes or get assistance with a broken meter can be found here.
Put in perspective
Austin leaders touted the efficiency and organization of the warming shelters as a success, and called on residents to participate in helping unhoused populations during severe winter weather looking forward.
“In the future, I would love to see more people at the Central Texas Food Bank volunteering for things like this, volunteering with Austin Area Urban League, which was helping run the city shelters this time,” Travis County Judge Andy Brown said. “The city staff and the county staff did great work. Volunteers did great work. And I think the thing that's going to save us in the future for when we have stronger, worse disasters, frankly, is a robust number of people volunteering.”
What’s next
Residents can expect another, less severe cold front to hit Austin this weekend, Jan. 19-20, with temperatures dropping to the mid-20s, Snipes said.
City updates related to the next cold front will be posted at www.austintexas.gov/alerts.
