BRYAN, Texas — Thousands of people throughout the Brazos Valley are reporting they are without power after a powerful winter storm slammed into the entire state of Texas. It brought below-freezing temperatures and left roads covered in ice and snow, making travel dangerous.
Stay with KAGS as this story develops.
Here are the latest updates for Thursday, Feb 18:
2:48 p.m.
The Robertson County Courthouse will be closed Friday, February 19 due to the weather.
1:35 p.m.
The Washington County SubHUB is gearing up for vaccines for COVID-19 again after the weather passes. Read more on what's happening here:
1:26 p.m.
Blinn-Brenham operations and classes, with the exception of health science clinicals, will be virtual starting Saturday, February 20th and going until Friday, February 26th.
See more updates on school closures here:
RELATED: Severe Weather: Closings and delays
10:08 a.m.
The City of Navasota is urgently asking people to conserve water due to a low water pressure situation. If you have a leak at your meter, please shut it off immediately and do not turn it back on until repairs are made. They are asking you to delay using water for washing machines and dishwashers.
9:36 a.m.
No school for College Station ISD for Friday, February 19. School officials said none of the missed days due to the weather this week need to be made up. School will resume on Monday, February 22.
8:55 a.m.
The warming center at Reed arena will be open until noon on Friday, February 19. With power outages still hitting the community hard, the need for the warming shelter continues through today. If you need a ride to the warming center, call Brazos Transit at 979-571-0701.
There are chairs and tables for guests, electricity to charge phones and access to wi-fi. The Red Cross has some blankets but, if you can, bring pillows, blankets, food and drinks. No alcohol is allowed.
12:24 a.m.
ERCOT said late Wednesday it had been able to restore approximately 1.6 million households. The agency said "It is possible that by morning, as load increases, local utilities may be able to go back to rotating outages versus keeping power off for extended periods of time."
Here are the latest updates for Wednesday, Feb. 17:
8:40 p.m.
Say it isn't SNOW! Dr. Christopher Nunley has the latest forecast:
5:38 p.m.
Texas A&M University is asking students to conserve water due to campus water supplies at critically low levels.
5:22 p.m.
College Station city offices and facilities are closed to the public on Thursday, February 18. Staff will continue working remotely and online services are still available.
Solid waste and recycling collections are still suspended until road conditions improve.
3:55 p.m.
Despite many rumors circulating on social media, the City of Bryan announced on Wednesday that it is not shutting off its water supply.
"These rumors are false," the city said in a statement. "... The only action being taken right now is asking residents and businesses to conserve water as much as possible."
3:52 p.m.
The COVID-19 testing location at St. Teresa’s Catholic Church is closed the rest of the week due to inclement weather.
Testing will resume at St. Teresa’s on Monday, Feb. 22.
12:55 p.m.
The City of College Station is asking customers to cut back on non-essential water use due to high water demand. The weather has warmed slightly, pipes that were frozen are thawing, and is likely driving the demand.
Customers are asked to slow faucets to a drip if absolutely necessary. Check sprinkler systems, especially above-ground backflow preventers and swimming pool equipment for leaks.
If you find a leak, turn off the main source to the house. It is usually located between the house and the water meter. Sometimes it is in the same box as the meter or located in the garage or house. Turn it off all the way to the right and call a plumber.
Water leaks can be reported to Utility Dispatch at 855-528-4278, option 2.
11:27 a.m.
Water Boil notice has been issued for Snook. Due to electrical outages and low water pressure, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has required the city of Snook public water system to notify all customers to boil their water prior to consumption (washing hands/face, brushing teeth, drinking, etc.) Children, seniors and people with weakened immune systems are particularly to harmful bacteria.
Water should be brought to a vigorous boil, boiled for two minutes and cooled, before consuming.
11:16 a.m.
College Station ISD schools are closed today. Due to continuing dangerous road conditions, power outages and rolling blackouts,all CSISD schools will be closed for both in-person and virtual learners on Thursday, February 18.
11:00 a.m.
The City of Bryan is asking people to begin conserving water due to a low pressure situation. If you are dripping your faucets, you can turn them off at this time. Please use as little water as possible.
10:40 a.m.
AT&T is automatically waiving data overage charges for customers in 2,416 Texas ZIP codes through Sunday since so many people without power are relying on their phones.
Customers should know that they may still receive alerts that they’re going over their plan’s limits. Those are automated and the credit will be applied to their bills provided their billing addresses with AT&T are within the zip codes provided.
8:40 a.m.
Beginning at 10 a.m., if you are stuck at your home in Robertson County and need to get to a warming shelter, call 979-828-3299. The Robertson County Sheriff's Office will work to get someone to you and pick you up. The warming shelters are at the Pridgeon Center at 351 Cooks Lane in Franklin and at the Bremond Fire Department at 417 North Commerce Street in Bremond.
People planning to stay at the Pridgeon Center need to check in by 6 p.m. You will need to bring your own bedding. Small pets are welcome, but must be crated.
5:15 a.m.
Oncor is reporting 21,195 active outages and said controlled outages remain in place.
Early morning low temperatures and increased power demand may result in the direction from ERCOT to once again reduce additional load, Oncor said.
3:45 a.m.
Meteorologist Christopher Nunley said Brazos Valley is being hit with a "crippling ice storm" and could see an inch of freezing rain – enough to bring down trees and powerlines.
2:15 a.m.
The National Weather Service is calling the overnight freezing rain and sleet event the worst of the week.
12:05 a.m.
Oncor is reporting 23,977 active outages.
Here are the latest updates for Tuesday, Feb. 16:
10:15 p.m.
All Bryan + College Station Public Library System locations will be closed Wednesday, Feb. 17. All virtual services are available and the libraries may be reached online.
9:50 p.m.
9 p.m.
8 p.m.
TxDOT is cautioning drivers about gas shortages along I-10 near Van Horn and Boerne.
7:40 p.m.
Madisonville is now under a boil water notice.
7 p.m.
The Brazos Valley African American Museum is closed until further notice. Due to the weather conditions, museum staff does not want to put visitors or themselves at risk as rolling power outages continue and travel is treacherous.
6:18 p.m.
Blinn has closed all campuses for Wednesday, Feb.17 and Thursday, Feb. 18. All face-to-face and virtual classes are canceled, but Brenham Food Services will remain open.
6 p.m.
We have lost power here again at the station. Like many of you, it's off and on all day long. We put together your latest forecast:
4:52 p.m.
College Station city offices and facilities remain closed to the public through Wednesday. Solid waste and recycling collections are suspended until road conditions improve.
Bryan ISD is closed for tomorrow. See more closures here:
RELATED: Severe Weather: Closings and delays
3:30 p.m.
KAGS' Elisabeth Tharp is learning a lot about the havoc that winter storms can create, especially when it comes to our homes. Check out her story:
3 p.m.
Reed Arena is opening up as a warming center Tuesday until noon Thursday, officials told KAGS in a statement.
The warming center will be open starting at 4 p.m. for people in the community who do not have power and seek shelter from the cold.
2 p.m.
The Brazos County judge has placed the county under a Declaration of Local Disaster because of severe weather conditions.
College Station Utilities has a backlog of nearly 10,000 calls they are working through, according to manager Colin Killian.
In a news release sent out Tuesday, Killian said the backlog is due to rolling outages and busted water pipes.
The American Red Cross is working to establish warming centers in the Brazos Valley, but officials say they are experiencing "compounding problems," according to a Tuesday news release.
The problems include unsafe driving conditions, lack of electricity at shelter locations, travel issues for staff and volunteers to operate the warming centers, as well as COVID-19 precautions that are needed to operate.
Here are the latest updates for Monday, Feb. 15:
10:30 p.m.
A Hard Freeze Warning is in effect for our area, along with a Wind Chill Warning. Another Winter Storm Warning is going to be issued from Tuesday until Thursday.
5 p.m.
Gov. Abbott deploys the National Guard to help do welfare checks and assist people in getting to heating centers.
RELATED: Texas National Guard deployed to help Texans during unprecedented power outage, winter storm
4 p.m.
ERCOT says it restored power to half-a-million homes and still have 1.5 million without power across Texas.
10:30 a.m.
ERCOT said to expect rotating power outages to continue into Tuesday as power demand remains at record highs during the ongoing winter storm.
Roughly two million homes are without power.
10:10 a.m.
The College Station Police Department says its phone system is back online.
9:40 a.m.
The College Station Police Department reported the Emergency Communications Center has lost power. All 911 emergency calls are being answered by Brazos County. The police department also does not have a working NON-emergency number. Please do not call the police department unless it is an absolute emergency. Crews are working to restore the power.
9:15 a.m.
The Bryan Police Department said roads continue to be in dangerous conditons with ice and snow. If you absolutely have to drive, know that traffic signals may be affected by the rolling power outages in the area. If you come upon a non-working light, treat it like a 4-way stop.
9:00 a.m.
H-E-B adjusted its store hours again. All H-E-B stores in Brazos County are expected to open at noon today. They will only be open until 5 p.m.
8:00 a.m.
To get an update on the latest power outages, click here. We've got a full list of power companies and what they are reporting on the rolling outages, downed lines and other information. We also tell you how to stay warm when the power is out and how you can help conserve energy.
7:45 a.m.
Texas A&M University has canceled all its classes across all of Texas for Monday, February 15, 2021. This is due to rolling power outages and the winter weather causing people to be without power.
7:30 a.m.
The Robertson County Sheriff's Office said there is no travel advised throughout the county. They are asking people not to drive unless it absolutely necessary. This means they are asking you not to drive unless it is an emergency.
