The National Weather Service (NWS) is forecasting a hard freeze and dangerous wind chill temperatures beginning Thursday afternoon, Dec. 22, bringing the coldest temperatures so far this season. Most of North and Central Texas will reach Hard Freeze Warning criteria (temperature < 10°F) and Wind Chill Advisory criteria (wind chill < 0°F) Thursday night into Friday morning, and the region is expected to remain below freezing until Christmas Day.
There is a low chance (10-15 percent) of precipitation across portions of North Texas, primarily in the form of sprinkles or light snow flurries. Impacts to travel are not expected.
STAY SAFE
Residents should prepare for dangerously low temperatures.
- Frigid temperatures can lead to increased demand for electricity and natural gas. Residents should consider reducing large appliance use and turning thermostats down to 68 degrees to conserve energy.
- Residents are urged to use extreme safety precautions with candles, space heaters and other alternative heat sources to reduce fire risk.
- Water pipes may freeze and break, including some that are not directly exposed to the frigid air.
- Wrap extra insulation around exposed pipes.
- Attach hose bib covers.
- Open cabinets to warm indoor pipes.
- Drip faucets during freezing temps.
- Drain and store outside hoses.
- Drain and shut off irrigation systems.
HELPFUL LINKS
During this inclement weather event, residents should follow updates from the National Weather Service Fort Worth office.
- 24/7 Electricity Outage Information: Find outage information
- Report a Power Outage – toll-free, 24/7 hotline: (888) 313-6862 or (888) 313-4747
- Report a Power Outage online: Report power outages
- Text Oncor about a Power Outage: The service requires preregistration.
- Text ‘reg’ to 66267 (ONCOR) to register. Please have either your ESID or the telephone number listed on your account and your ZIP code to complete registration.
- Text ‘out’ to 66267 (ONCOR) to report your outage.
- Text ‘stat’ to 66267 (ONCOR) to receive an update on your outage.
- Atmos Energy: To report a gas leak, call at (866) 322-8667
- Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT)
- Oncor Chronic Care Customer Application: Learn more
