Due to the effects of the President’s Day Ice Storm, many of our District G neighbors – as well as residents across the state continue to face unprecedented power outages as a result of strain on the state electrical grid. As of this morning, approximately 4.3 million Texans are still without power; that includes about 1.4 million CenterPoint customers in the Houston region.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) issued a Level 3 Emergency Alert to notify residents of rotating outages and to order utility providers to reduce demand on the system. If you are fortunate enough to have power, it is still possible that it could be shut off as efforts to stabilize usage are ongoing.

This morning CenterPoint informed city officials they had been told by ERCOT two large generators will be brought online today. Good news is our grid/electric lines have not been heavily damaged by this storm, so restoring power should go smoothly as ERCOT allows. Last night CenterPoint started restoring power to homes that had been without power the longest. In turn, they also had to cut power to others who previously had it. Further, CenterPoint is moving from an all-automatic system of cutting off and restoring power to some manual operations, which will allow them to target cuts to commercial areas in the Galleria and Downtown. CenterPoint officials stated they are directed to reduce load by ERCOT and couldn’t make any guarantees about when power will be fully restored.

Residents with electricity in their homes are encouraged to conserve power by temporarily lowering your thermostat settings to 68° and delaying usage of nonessential and large appliances (such as washing machines, dishwashers, ovens, and dryers).

For those in need, there are a number of warming centers open across the region, including the George R. Brown Convention Center and Lakewood Church. Call ahead in order to confirm availability. Likewise, if you do not have power, but require it for medical devices, please call 3-1-1.

While the coldest of the temperatures may still be behind us, our region is expected to experience freezing weather through at least Friday. Make preparations to ride this out safely. If you must travel, please check the Houston Transtar Traffic Map to plan a safe route that avoids ice and road closures.

Additionally, yesterday there were disturbing reports of criminals taking advantage of this crisis by pretending to be utility workers to gain access into homes. CenterPoint has confirmed that all of their employees and contractors wear identification and do not need to access the inside of your home to make repairs. Please be vigilant and report suspicious activity to the Houston Police Department immediately by calling 9-1-1.

Some residents may also experience low water pressure. However, there has been no boil water advisory issued at this time. If your water is discolored please report it to 3-1-1. Drinking water operations are in good shape.

For official updates on the ongoing weather conditions, please monitor Houston's Office of Emergency Management by: