Christina thanks. Now back to that
Arctic blast as temperatures are
about to go from chilly to extremely cold.
That cold set to sweep across
Texas in the next 36 hours,
then stick around for days.
Norcott says the power grid
is ready for it right now.
The power tracker shows normal operations.
Here's a look at ERCOT supply and
demand graph for the next 24 hours.
The purple section shows the grids
committed capacity and the turquoise
section represents the demand.
The graph shows there is enough.
Electricity to meet that demand right now,
of course, power is just one part of the
equation as we prepare for this freeze.
Yeah, Houston and Harris County will
open several warming Centers for
anyone who needs to beat the cold.
Michelle Choi is live downtown
with more on the city and counties
preparations. Michelle.
David said good morning.
Yeah, the city and county say there
will be several different warming
centers available starting Thursday.
The big one will be at the
George R Brown Convention Center.
We've got the full list on kou.com right now.
Meanwhile, the city and county are
trying to spread the word about how
they're preparing for this cold and
what you should be doing as well.
We are preparing for the worst
and hoping for for the best,
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and
Harris County Judge Lena Hidalgo seeking
to calm nerves and share important
information ahead of the freeze.
They emphasize this should not
be a repeat of February 2021.
They say the power grids should
be able to handle the cold.
And they're taking precautions,
the city sharing this image of
crews winterizing local water plans.
This week, meanwhile,
they discussed what you should
and shouldn't do.
The city of Houston again asking people
to not drip faucets because of potential.
Impacts to the city's water pressure and
risk of causing another boil water order.
Our system is run not through
water towers but through
repump stations on the ground.
And it requires electricity.
So we ask people not to drip their
faucets because the the the way
we put pressure on the system that
could actually cause pressure
losses throughout the system.
Meanwhile, Judge Hidalgo says if you're
on the county's separate water systems,
dripping is OK you've sent us other questions
about the freeze and pipes like this one,
asking if I drain my pipes. Thursday night,
is it OK to turn them back on Friday,
Saturday or Sunday to cook?
Here's Public works director Carol Haddock.
I will tell you I personally am
going to drain the pipes in my house,
so I'll go out, you know, we'll fill
the toilets up in an extra pitcher.
So if somebody needs to use it
overnight, turn the valve off,
drain the pipes, go to bed,
get up in the morning and turn it on
the city saying you should also
consider draining your pipes and
turning off your water if you're
leaving town over the holiday.
Another viewer asked is it safe to turn
the oven on and leave the door open for
5 minutes to warm up the apartment.
Harris County.
Fire Marshall Laurie Christensen
says no, BBQ
pits, don't turn on your ovens,
your gas stove, anything like that,
because those create toxic gases
that create carbon monoxide.
And what that carbon monoxide
is is a silent killer.
Yeah. Now one of the other questions
we've seen a lot is about travel.
Well, the good news is with a dry forecast,
we're not expecting any kind of
problems with icy roads in our region.
But if that were to change,
the city and county say they are ready
to treat the roads and tech dot is
monitoring other parts of the state for
anyone taking a Christmas road trip.
Kimberly, back to you
Michelle Troy live for us
this morning. Thank you.
Time now is five O 5 starting tomorrow,
the star of Hope's love in action van.
Will visit Houston's homeless to
distribute blankets and coats
while spreading the word that life
threatening cold weather is on tap,
but they are in urgent need of all
sizes of new or gently used coats,
blankets, hats,
gloves and financial assistance
to help continue that effort.
Those donations can be brought to the
star of hopes Cornerstone community,
which is located on Hwy 288.
Drop off hours are between 8:00
AM and 7:00 PM.
As we get ready for the freeze,
we are making sure you're
ready to protect the four.
Peace. That's people, pets,
plants and pipes. For your pets,
experts say you should bring them
indoors during the cold snap,
but if you can't, you're required
by law to have adequate shelter,
food and water for them outside.
As for protecting people,
plants and pipes.
Good morning. I'm Matt Doherty
at the George R Brown Convention
Center in downtown.
It's one of five warming centers that
are going to open up on Thursday.
For those of us who are going to be
keeping warm at home this holiday,
local officials are asking us to be safe.
The fire Marshall advises residents
to use the three foot rule.
That means keeping a 3 foot
perimeter around space heaters and
fireplaces clear of objects and pets.
Gas powered generators should never be
used indoors or even close to a home.
I'm Janelle boluda.
If hardware stores sell out of supplies,
there may be alternatives you
already have at home. For pipes,
the first alternative is a pool noodle.
Plumbers say these foam
floats will work as insulation
for exposed outdoor pipes.
If you don't have that,
you could also use towels, blankets,
even old T-shirts and some duct tape.
I'm sure
Michael, we're just a day
away now from the big freeze,
so here's some tips from the experts
to protect your plants. First up,
most ideal are frost or plant covers.
Those allow for circulation of air
underneath as well as protecting
from wind and moisture from above.
Second best. The old fashioned bed
sheet does pretty much the same thing,
though just not quite as well.
And another option you could consider
if you have like a prized plant,
you can use a cardboard box or even
an overturned laundry basket to
go ahead and sort of protect it,
place it on top and then cover
it again with a bed sheet.
Some simple tips for you to use at home.
If you missed any of that information,
just text the word freeze
27135261111 and we'll text you back
with links to helpful information.