Snowmageddon in Texas

[AzScorpion]

We have had snow in Cave Creek twice in the last 10 years. First time it was just a dusting that lingered on the mountains. Last time it was two inches that melted off the roads pretty quick but hung around everywhere else. Made it look postcard perfect up here. It made it as far south as the 101 and Deer Valley area.

Most of my family is back in Texas. The Rolling Blackouts are killing them. My sisters house got down to 37 degrees inside the house at one point and moms condo association has had burst pipes that flood out not only the unit the pipe burst in, but the one below it too. Displacing two families at one time. Sister went out to look at what to do if they had to shut off water and found out the city in their infinite wisdom put on an E-Monitoring system (pretty common these days) but to keep their expensive radio gear from getting stolen, they put on a tamper proof lid so you can't get to the shut off. GENIUS! If pipes burst in her neightborhood you call the city and wait for them to come out and turn it off. I'm sure they'l be getting right on that call with the roads being frozen over and all.

I think if I ever had to live in an area where cold was a possibility like they are getting in Texas right now - even if it is a once in 100 years thing - I would build a LEED Certified Passive House with solar and a Tesla Battery. Something that could be an off grid home but functions normally on grid when there is enough civilization to go around.

Greg, I remember seeing the snow up in Cave Creek and even northern Scottsdale too. You guys are just up in elevation enough to occasionally get hot with some where I'm at 980 ft elevation. We've had a bunch of sleet over the past 8 years, these are from November 2019. This pic below is enough for me, glad my Ranger was in the garage for this one!

Hope all you guys in TX get your heat on soon as I've lived through these back east and they're no fun. Especially when you're not equipped for it. Right before I moved out here we had a freak ice/snow storm which hit the entire east coast. It was October 29th and there were trees down everywhere. Temps dropped into the low 30's and power was out in some areas for 3 weeks. Glad I had already sold my house and was just renting a condo at the time. This was what I woke up to on the 30th. I moved here to AZ shortly after!

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[DukeCanBuildit]

Agreed, we can't rely on any single source of energy, green or not...

...there wont be a single flat piece of earth left for them to build on, let alone survive on.

What the blazes are you even talking about? The earth is flat - always has been!

 

[Strokerduster]

Here it comes AGAIN. Today should be the last day of this......

 

[Leftcoast]

I think there was recently a 2 billion dollar plan in place to connect the Texas grid, and the US Eastern and Western grids all together with a sort of "super hub" that would allow the various grids to buy and sell capacity to each other. Not sure what happened to that, or if it's still in the works.

I didn't know that Texas had an independent power grid. I looked it up and voila! Heads will roll once the dust settles. I don't see Texas giving up their power autonomy but I can see them doubling down on backup. The water shortages will be addressed too since they are impacting hospitals. Hundred year natural disasters tend to readjust design paramaters.

 

[JKocot]

Yesterday 267,000 in San Antonio were without power. My mother lives next to Kelly AFB and has not lost power. Your son will be across the street from Kelly. Your son will be fine. Currently the number is down to 68,000.

https://poweroutage.us/

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Joe,

Thanks for replying!

 

[Ericrcif]

Me making popcorn in Maine to sit and read this thread.

 

[Cape Cruiser]

I didn't know that Texas had an independent power grid. I looked it up and voila! Heads will roll once the dust settles. I don't see Texas giving up their power autonomy but I can see them doubling down on backup. The water shortages will be addressed too since they are impacting hospitals. Hundred year natural disasters tend to readjust design paramaters.

I worked for an electric utility company that we travelled all over to restore electric grids after disasters . After a hurricane hit the gulf region we travelled 3.5 days with 60 bucket trucks and other support vehicles only to sit in our trucks for 16 hours eating taco's from a brown paper bag and sleeping all day. Texas electric company had no idea what to do, no fuel, transformers wire or poles or anyone to give you a job to do. They had no preparation at all. We left there and went to Mississippi and worked for a couple of weeks. Since I have been to Florida ,Mississippi ,North Carolina, New York state and Long Island ,Connecticut, Massachusetts and Canada with some several times and never again saw the mismanagement that was seen in Texas. Maybe due to Electric utility or politics not sure, but it wasn't good for its citizens.

 

[Cape Cruiser]

i am appreciative when companies can share their resources in this way.
I was a "survivor" of a freak Oct 13th storm that was way out of character for my part of the country.
to have other electric companies come to help was an amazing gesture.
i had no power for 4 days, and while it wast life threatening, it was sure annoying.

when storms like these get you off guard, you need help period. no power company can be prepared to do it alone.

I recall our provincial trucks heading out to help after hurricanes and other ice storms in other areas.

I think the last time I was in Canada was 1991 for a terrible ice storm. Was only there 2 weeks after we were in north east New York state for 2 weeks. I felt bad when we left as they were still in bad shape. Many of the main towers were down. Their system was so destroyed they couldn't afford to pay us, but our company did. I have been retired for 11 years now and still to this day any northeaster ,snow storms, tornados or anything else the Canadians come down to New Jersey and help us out. I'm quite sure the debt has been repaid many times over. With deregulation, mutual aid its the only way for utilities to survive during a disaster. That was the longest I had to work, 16 hour plus days for just over a month without a day off. EDIT I think this was the 1998 storm and I think the 1991 storm was further west in New York. Went to both and I think I got them backwards. Bret

 

[HBird]

Like others in here, we lost power twice (8 hours and then 25 hours) and ended up staying at friend's who never lost power. I have to say I was pretty impressed by this truck. Even driving in the fresh snow yesterday morning back to our house when we got power back, it was smooth sailing. No traction issues whatsoever.

 

[Apollo51]

Been driving everyday during the Texas snowpocalypse first picture though

 

[Mellow]

 

[Strokerduster]

.

 

[IdahoRanger]

I thought everything was bigger in TX?

 

[Pleatherface]

Saw this article this morning...

https://www.thedrive.com/news/39319...n-texas-are-using-trucks-to-power-their-homes

 

[Robisten8]

Me making popcorn in Maine to sit and read this thread.

Enjoy, you'll have far less chances to do that than our chances to sit back and eat popcorn when y'all complain about how hot 85 degrees is in July. You're no more accustomed to heat than we are the cold. BTW, many Texans travel to Colorado and other cold climates for ski trips. It's just unusual to see these temps and weather in our own backyards. We're also not equipped, as a State, to deal with it. No ice trucks, salt, plows, shovels and most of our pipes are in the attic, etc.

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