Tarrant, Collin and Denton counties as well the northwestern part of Dallas County are expected to receive a total of 2-3 inches of snow and sleet, with around 0.1-0.25 inches of ice alone, according to the National Weather Service. The southwestern part of Dallas County will accumulate 1-2 inches of snow and sleet.
The National Weather Service forecasts a high temperature of 26 degrees Fahrenheit in DFW on Feb. 3 with below-freezing temperatures continuing through Feb. 5.
Most school districts in the region have canceled classes Feb. 3-4, and many city and county offices and businesses have closed as well. Services such as trash pickup have been delayed, and public facilities like recreation centers and libraries throughout the region are closed or offer only limited hours. Warming stations have opened in McKinney, Plano and Lewisville.
Road conditions continue to be dangerous, with about a quarter of an inch of ice on the roads in Collin County as of 10:30 a.m. Feb. 3., said Tony Hartzel, Texas Department of Transportation public information officer.
Crews pretreated the roads with brine before the ice began and are continuing to put salt and sand down to improve road conditions, Hartzel said. While this has helped the ice turn to “slush” more quickly as vehicles pass through, roads are still hazardous.
Hartzel said there have not been any major incidents in the Dallas area as of late morning Feb. 3.
“So far, it looks like people have been paying attention and heeding the warning to just stay home,” Hartzel said. “That has helped keep the incidences to a minimum.”
The Dallas area has about 500 employees dedicated to weather response, Hartzel said. Roads will be plowed starting in the right lanes of major highways, such as US 75 and US 380, and clearing additional lanes will follow.
Hartzel said he expects crews will need to be out treating the roads for the next several days.
“It’s hard to give a timeline [for when roads will be cleared and safe to drive on],” Hartzel said. “It might get warm enough to start melting, but then it's going to get right back below freezing pretty quickly.”
As for those who need to be out on the roads, Hartzel said drivers should slow down far below the speed limit, anticipate that there will be ice on the roads and keep a safe distance from other vehicles.
Beyond highways, city officials are recommending residents stay off city roads as well.
“Every turn is a drift; every stop is a slide; and every start is a spin-out,” Public Works Director Alonzo Liñán from Keller said in the city’s newsletter.
While last year’s Winter Storm Uri caused Texans to experience rolling blackouts, as of 11:15 a.m. Feb 3, the electric grid status is normal, according to the website http://poweroutage.us. Smaller, isolated blackouts from local power providers are happening throughout the region.
Of the more than 1 million customers tracked by poweroutage.us in Dallas County, just under 2,500 were without power as of 11:15 a.m. Feb. 3. In Collin County, the number without power was 8,700 customers. Tarrant County had just over 2,000 customers without power while Denton County showed 86 customers without power, the website showed.
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport initially released a statement at 8:30 a.m. announcing that runways were not operational due to inclement weather. As of 10:45 a.m. the first runway had reopened.
The statement went on to say that the airport will have “intermediate stoppages throughout the day to treat for snow and ice,” and advised that travelers should check in with their airlines for specific flight updates before heading to the airport.
