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Houston preparing for arctic blast
FOX 26 Reporter Matthew Seedorff has more as Houstonians are preparing for the brutal cold weather expected.
HOUSTON - A powerful winter storm with life-threatening cold temperatures is now surging across the country. In the Houston area, no precipitation is expected. However, The National Weather Service has issue hard freeze and wind chill warnings for almost all of Texas.
"Texas is open 24/7," said Texas Governor Greg Abbott. "Whatever challenge may arrive, we will have staff available to meet that challenge."
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While no snow, rain, sleet, or freezing rain is expected over the next few days, crews from the Texas Department of Transportation are still watching the roadways closely.
"TxDOT isn’t expecting any precipitation on any roadways," said Emily Black, a spokesperson from TxDOT. "Most of our roadway incidents may come from people leaving their sprinklers on [and] patchy ice popping up from that. We’re ready to respond to any of those spots we see come up."
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People across Houston are getting prepared for the deep winter freeze. Several hardware stores are sold-out of freeze related supplies.
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Whataburger for the win? Would using their cup be safe to protect your pipes?
FOX 26 Reporter Matthew Seedorff spoke with a local plumbing expert about whether a Whataburger cup will provide enough protection for your pipes.
"Last two or three days, we’ve been slammed," said Duane Myers, owner of C&D Hardware & Gifts. "Faucet covers, tarps, freeze cloth, just about everything related to the freeze is all gone."
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Harris County leaders urging preparedness ahead of hard freeze
FOX 26 Reporter Matthew Seedorff has more on what city and county officials are urging everyone to do ahead of the hard freeze that is quickly approaching.
At least six warming centers are opening across the Houston area. Harris County deputies drove around the area Wednesday warning homeless people of the upcoming freeze.
Despite the Arctic Blast, ERCOT and Texas leaders are confident the state’s power grid is prepared.
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"The grid is ready and reliable," said Peter Lake, Public Utility Commission Chairman. "We expect to have sufficient generation to meet demand this entire weather event."
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