Freezing temperatures and icy roads from winter storm stick around North Texas into Friday
Although most of the harsh weather and its precipitation in North Texas have ended Friday, icy roads and a demand for power remain concerns after the 2021 Texas freeze.
Follow for Friday weather updates.
Road conditions
Most of Texas on Friday afternoon was still reporting icy and snow-filled roads, according to DriveTexas, which provides updates to highway conditions from TxDOT.
Icy roads could thaw some Friday afternoon, but freezing conditions and refreezing will still probably make any commutes hazardous, according to the National Weather Service in Fort Worth.
More: North Texas road conditions expected to remain icy, hazardous until Saturday afternoon
Widespread thawing is not expected until Saturday afternoon. Any melting Friday won’t last long, as another overnight dip in temperatures is expected to refreeze anything that does melt.
Shawna Russell, of the TxDOT Fort Worth District, urged drivers to stay inside and delay any travel if possible.
“We hope people will not be fooled by the sunshine. Surfaces are still frozen and temperatures remain below freezing. The threat of refreezing is also a significant concern,” Russell said. “TxDOT’s Fort Worth District crews have been working six days straight to pre-treat, treat, and clear roadways in our nine-county area. We need the public’s help to safely navigate and reach our goal today, which is making roads as safe and passable as possible given current, and changing, conditions.”
Russell said residents can do two things to help crews: give extra space on the roads and drive slow.
MedStar personnel said between 10 a.m. and noon Friday, they received over 120 calls, averaging about a call per minute, including “17 calls for fall victims and four car crashes.”
Significant road closures in Tarrant County include the TEXpass lanes of Loop 820, which are expected to reopen by Monday morning.
“MAIN LANES not affected. Entrance Ramp closed,” TxDOT said. “All lanes of the eastbound and westbound I-820 TEXpress lanes from I-35W to the I-820/SH, 121/SH, 183 interchange are closed due to the winter weather storm. This includes the entrance to the TEXpress lanes.”
EB I-30 at Summit was shut down as of 4:22 a.m. because of a car crash, TxDOT Fort Worth reported on Twitter, advising commuters to use an alternate route.
All of the lanes on EB I-30 at Cherry, near Fort Worth, closed around 10:30 p.m. because of a crash. The area was cleared by 12:30 a.m.
Beginning at midnight, Fort Worth police had responded to six major accidents, six minor accidents and 54 stranded drivers Friday.
“We did have eastbound I-30 closed for a while because a few 18-wheelers couldn’t make it up the hill near Ridgmar Mall,” a spokesperson from the department said around 5:30 a.m. “We are currently working a single 18-wheeler jackknifed at 2001 W. Freeway at the entrance to Chisholm Trail Parkway, but no injuries I’m aware of.”
Most roads and highways are open in North Texas on Friday, said Val Lopez with TxDOT Fort Worth in a telephone interview with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
“We’re working 24/7, but we can’t get it all removed,” Lopez said, referring to the ice.
Lopez said crews will continue on Friday putting down sand, salt and brine on roads and highways.
“This was a unique storm in that we had so much rain before the storm arrived,” Lopez said. “That all froze and we are dealing with it now.”
Power outages and demand
As of noon Friday, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which manages the state’s electrical grid, reported that conditions confirmed there was enough power available to meet the current demand for electricity in the state.
ERCOT said that its emergency level 1, which contains a risk of controlled outages, occurs when reserve levels drop below 2,300 MW and are not expected to recover within 30 minutes. Friday morning, reserve levels were around 7,600 MW. Friday afternoon, they were around 7,800 MW.
Demand is expected to peak around 8 a.m. Saturday and there will be enough reserves available at that time, state officials said Friday.
From nearly 30,000 outages in North Texas around 5 a.m. Thursday, Friday showed a significant improvement. Oncor reported just over 8,200 customers affected early morning Friday and 9,800 on Friday afternoon.
“In the hardest hit areas, workers are having to maneuver treacherous roads to access damaged areas, use chainsaws and heavy equipment to remove ice-covered trees and debris that have fallen on powerlines, and work in sub-freezing temperatures to rebuild infrastructure and make repairs,” a news release from Oncor said.
“[Most outages remain in] north and northeast of the Dallas metro area and near the Red River,” they added. “Approximately half of these outages occurred with the storm’s initial arrival; the remaining half are new outages caused by trees and limbs falling under the weight of remaining ice buildup, ongoing wind conditions and hazardous roadways.”
Tarrant County, around 5 a.m., only reported 436 outages, as Dallas County reported around 600. Around noon, 124 Tarrant customers reported outages and about 2,100 in Dallas County.
Collin County, with 1,624, and Hunt County with over 3,800 outages, remained the most affected areas in North Texas as of Friday afternoon.
Precipitation accumulation
The National Weather Service said that throughout Wednesday and Thursday, Fort Worth saw 2.5 inches of snow and sleet accumulations. Dallas saw around 1.7 inches.
“Snow and sleet accumulations were heaviest north and west of the Metroplex where 3- 5 inches fell,” the weather service said. “A large swath of 1-3 inches occurred elsewhere with the lightest amounts in the southeast.”
Friday forecast
The National Weather Service reported the possibility of occasional flurries before 8 a.m. as the day was expected to warm up a bit from a low of 20 degrees early morning up to a high of 31 later in the day.
“The sun will return today helping temps warm into the upper 20s and low 30s. Some melting will occur but any residual water will refreeze as temps fall into the single digits and teens,” the National Weather Service tweeted at 6:40 a.m. “Highs Saturday will be above freezing, melting much of the snow & ice.”
The weather service, around noon, added that some areas around Fort Worth may be seeing the sun, but urged “that does not mean road conditions have improved.”
“Some spots may begin to thaw, while shaded areas will likely continue to be icy. Anything that does thaw will quickly refreeze this evening,” the weather service said.
Later in the night temperatures are expected to drop to 12 degrees, with light winds from 5 to 10 mph after midnight.
The region was under a wind chill advisory until 9 a.m. as temperatures around the Fort Worth area were expected to feel between 4 to 14 degrees, with wind gusts as high as 20 mph.
“Wind chills this low could result in hypothermia if precautions are not taken. Avoid travel if possible, and keep safety supplies in your car,” the weather service advised. “Bundle up and wear appropriate clothing if you have to get outside.”
MedStar said since the beginning of the storm, it has treated 11 patients for cold-related illnesses, 10 of which required hospitalization.
A hard freeze warning is in effect from midnight until 9 a.m. Saturday.
“Temperatures will fall between 5 and 10 degrees which may impact unprotected plumbing,” the weather service said. “Take steps now to protect not only plumbing but pets from the bitter cold temperatures expected.”
The forecast low Saturday morning is 13 before temperatures finally climb above freezing at near 40 Saturday afternoon.
This story was originally published February 4, 2022 at 5:40 AM.
