Texas continues to battle unprecedented winter storm conditions, with seven million people ordered to boil water following record low temperatures, which damaged pipes and infrastructure across the state.
The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a Hard Freeze Warning and a Wind Chill Advisory across the state including in the Houston/Galveston, Austin/San Antonio, Fort Worth/Dallas and Corpus Christi areas. The warning and advisory are in effect through Friday morning, until around 9 or 10 a.m. local time depending on the region.
A Hard Freeze Warning is issued "when temperatures are expected to drop below 28°F for an extended period of time, killing most types of commercial crops and residential plants," the NWS explains.
While power has been restored in nearly two million homes, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott warned residents "are not out of the woods" yet. Temperatures were reported to be well below freezing levels across the state, while a winter storm and food supply chains disruptions threaten south central Texas, the Associated Press reported Friday.
Temperatures fell into the single digits and teens in the north/central Texas region, while they were projected to fall below freezing again in the Houston area, the NWS warned Thursday.
The city of Del Rio, just outside San Antonio in southwest Texas, saw at least 11.2 inches of snow, which "sets the ALL TIME daily and 24 hour snowfall records for its climate record (back to 1915)," the NWS tweeted on Thursday.
A Hard Freeze WARNING is in effect for all of North/Central TX tonight (9 PM) to Friday (9 AM) with temperatures in the single digits and teens. The potential for additional pipe bursts will remain...be sure to protect plumbing if possible! #dfwwx #ctxwx #texomawx #etxwx #abilene pic.twitter.com/fsGt1ST0zD
— NWS Fort Worth (@NWSFortWorth) February 18, 2021
The NWS of the Fort Worth/Dallas area warned "additional impacts are expected" as the state thaws out over the next few days, as "slush and melted ice/snow will re-freeze each night.
"As temperatures begin to warm up, ice and snow could melt and fall from roofs, trees, buildings, and towers... be extra careful if you're nearby any of these things," the NWS added.
More than 1,000 Texas public water systems and 177 of the state's 254 counties reported weather-related operational disruptions, as of Thursday afternoon, which impacted more than 14 million people, according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Here is our preliminary and unofficial snow map from yesterday. Note: this is new accumulation only (didn't think those words would ever need to be said here). pic.twitter.com/gpMOXaW7Tp
— NWS Austin/San Antonio (@NWSSanAntonio) February 19, 2021
The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) tweeted on Thursday: "Boil water notices are active across Texas. Please check for local alerts and guidance. Follow and share the water boil safety steps in this thread. Please continue to conserve water and energy. Stay off roads when possible."
We have another cold night in store across Texas. Temperatures will fall into the 20s for most of us. Moderate wind east will also lead to dangerous wind chill values. pic.twitter.com/ue1S9pLrnl
— NWS Corpus Christi (@NWSCorpus) February 19, 2021
Stormy weather conditions linger across the country, which could produce a tornado and heavy rain with flash flooding in the southeast region. Record cold temperatures remain in the south, while mountain snow continues in the northwest, the NWS reported Friday.
"Much below-average temperatures continue to linger over the Central/Southern Plains into the Middle/Lower Mississippi Valley," it added.
