WATCH LIVE: See how the freeze moves through SE Texas
Weather forecast for Houston, Texas, live radar, satellite, severe weather alerts, hour by hour and 7 day forecast temperatures and Hurricane tracking from KPRC 2 and Click2Houston.com.
โDangerous cold weatherโ: Houston breaks records for lowest temperatures Tuesday morning
Houston has broken several cold records this week due to the hard freeze that has moved through the area.
ERCOT power forecast: Whatโs predicted for the grid during the winter freeze
As we get closer to the freezing weather in Texas, ERCOT provides a 6-day forecast for its grid capacity. Here's what ERCOT is expecting for supply and demand during the cold snap.
This is when ERCOT predicts we could see rolling blackouts
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has released a forecast for January 2024 and it explains when the power grid has the highest chances of requiring conservations, and even rolling blackouts.
ERCOT issues Weather Watch ahead of extreme cold weather in SE Texas
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has issued a Weather Watch from Jan. 15-17 due to forecasted extreme cold weather across Southeast Texas, higher electrical demand, and the potential for lower reserves.
Get these items out of your car ahead of freezing temperatures
With bitterly cold temperatures expected across much of Texas, hopefully you are taking steps to make sure your family, your pets, and your home are ready for the frigid weather. Before you settle in to ride out this winter blast though, you should check the inside of your car to make sure you didnโt accidentally leave something outside that could cause an expensive mess.
Below-freezing temps likely as coldest weather of the season expected next week in SE Texas: What to know๐ง
There is increasing concern for a hard freeze across Southeast Texas that will possibly happen next Monday night into Tuesday morning, the National Weather Service announced. There is also the potential for another hard freeze Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.
Ask Amy: Can my landlord shut off my water before the freeze?
Renters at one Sugar Land apartment complex asked Amy Davis if their landlord can legally shut off the water to the entire complex to avoid damage to their pipes when freezing temperatures hit overnight tonight.
Dangers of Carbon Monoxide: Why you need to know symptoms instead of relying on detectors
Health experts are sending a warning about Carbon Monoxide poisoning ahead of this weekโs arctic blast.
Mayor Turner, Judge Hidalgo urge Houstonians to prepare, plan ahead of hard freeze this week
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and Mayor Sylvester Turner on Tuesday provided an update on the hard freeze thatโs heading to our area Thursday.
From blankets to Christmas lights, check out some helpful tips to protect your plants from the freeze
Frost cloth, blankets, even incandescent Christmas lights can help cover plants and keep them warm during the freezing temps.
Itโs freezing in southeast Texas. Do NOT do these things.
Across the Houston area, February is off to a freezing start. The good news is this blast of arctic air wonโt be with us long. The bad news is that itโs here just long enough to cause costly problems if you do things that should NOT.
The links you need during this winter freeze. Bookmark this article and be prepared.
While this weekโs bitterly cold temperatures arenโt expected to have the same impact as the February freeze of 2021, people across our area should be prepared so they stay safe. To make sure you have all the information you need at your fingertips, weโve put the links we use in our news coverage together in one place.
Hereโs how to safely stay warm as frigid temps creep into the Houston area
Anticipated cold weather has fire officials in Spring warning residents about dangerous methods they may use to warm up, especially since theyโve already responded to more fires in 2022 than this time last year.
Consumers should expect gas bills to increase as providers recoup $3.4B loss due to freeze
Local energy experts predict that Texas natural gas consumers should likely expert an increase in their energy bills next year as state leadership and the Railroad Commission of Texas have recently approved measures to allow eight major natural gas providers to recoup $3.4 billion in significant losses due to the storm.
![Griddy customers donโt have to pay huge bills from February freeze](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/yPabAh2TzZIYGICtPkAcnnGpdhY=/800x536/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/JPAU2RL6EJHDBEPA7PXB7HMZ5M.jpg)
Griddy customers donโt have to pay huge bills from February freeze
Former customers of Griddy Energy are off the hook. A settlement between the Texas Attorney General and the wholesale electric provider means customers stuck with huge bills from the February freeze won't have to pay a dime.
![What you should do if you get a big water bill as a result of the freeze](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/X5hLMoGeXd5beACJmnQVmhmX2bM=/1600x900/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/03-12-2021/t_60d5a96b4c6847f6960f6937cec76297_name_image.jpg)
What you should do if you get a big water bill as a result of the freeze
HOUSTON โ Water leaks from broken pipes during the stateโs big freeze caused big bills for thousands of City of Houston customers. If you have already received a big bill for water usage during the time of the freeze, Houston Public Works Department says you should pay on the due date, but donโt pay the abnormally high amount. You should pay the amount on your previous water bill that was more in line with your normal usage. When you receive your April bill, Houston Public Works says you will notice an adjustment. Public Works says its software will flag accounts with abnormally high usage over the week of the big freeze.
![Ask 2: Who is responsible for wrapping pipes at a rental property?](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/uwrAdu0EiU26CuXvlKJAQLXI-Gk=/1600x1200/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/WEND46RTLJBE5K2MZT2XFLWAGI.jpg)
Ask 2: Who is responsible for wrapping pipes at a rental property?
As part of our Ask 2 series, the newsroom will answer your questions about all things Houston. Question: Who is responsible for wrapping pipes at a rental property? Landlords, especially in apartment complexes and condominiums, are responsible for making winter weather preparations before a freeze event occurs, such as pipe wrapping and winterizing. If pipes freeze and they burst, it is the landlordโs responsibility to fix the pipes and pay for all damages. According to the Houston Apartment Association, renterโs insurance usually covers water damage from burst pipes and their property inside the rental home.
![Tips to get your lawn and yard back in shape after the freeze](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/oZpRRfjRw5QFrS9sXQOy9pGwQhg=/1600x900/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/03-05-2021/t_5161b5756a4442e1a9e1b45742fe85bb_name_image.jpg)
Tips to get your lawn and yard back in shape after the freeze
HOUSTON โ In a โnormalโ year, Houston area lawns would be looking lush, green and ready for Spring. However, last monthโs freeze left our landscape looking brown and dead. Randy Lemmon has been hosting the Garden Line with Randy Lemmon radio show on KTRH News 740 for nearly 25 years. He has been looking for signs of life all over the Gulf Coast region since the big freeze. According to Lemmon, you need to start cutting away all of the brown dead leaves and look for any green you can find.
![Residents at senior apartment complex go over a week without water](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/W2KN7Lp-Yf0cyvXCb1OkWaHw_5o=/1600x900/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/02-27-2021/t_184cb1593f9b4fa792c3f42943debac9_name_image.jpg)
Residents at senior apartment complex go over a week without water
โThank God!โ said Tyrone Evan, who has been a resident at the senior living apartment complex for the last five years. Evan said residents, who are all 55 years old and older, were without running water for over a week. โWhen you get water and stuff from the pool, you canโt bathe and stuff in that water. You know what Iโm saying.โHarris County Precinct 3 Commissioner Tom Ramsey secured the trucks to bring water to the complex. โThese are senior citizens, here they are not able to carry buckets of water like a lot of other folks,โ said Ramsey.
![Texas experts believe construction changes can cut destruction from weather events down](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/jIYjtzyzSel6WmSEmRhrVzRhzys=/1600x900/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/02-25-2021/t_975db5e128c3415b84b1a5729c039f7e_name_image.jpg)
Texas experts believe construction changes can cut destruction from weather events down
He made it clear to us he was in favor of changes being implemented in Texas construction. โWe could do a lot better with better building codes in Texas and better enforcement of the building codes that do exist,โ he said. Thompson said spray foam is a big help during a freeze. AdโI think that spray foam insulation and pex pipe is the way to go,โ he said. โThe spray foam used to be really expensive but now itโs come way down because itโs getting used so much,โ said Thompson.
![ERCOTโs rolling blackouts draw first lawsuit; AG vows probe](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/-tglaIRwzPrxaPdNzGbuO5IqHmU=/1600x1066/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/IYHPWBSRNVDQHNB45BSPJXVZPQ.jpg)
ERCOTโs rolling blackouts draw first lawsuit; AG vows probe
(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)DALLAS (AP) โ The blackouts that left much of Texas cold and thirsty have spawned their first lawsuit. The lawsuit filed Friday in a Nueces County court at law in Corpus Christi alleges the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, manager of the stateโs main electric grid, ignored repeated warnings of weaknesses in the stateโs electric power infrastructure. A Dallas law firmโs statement says its lawsuit also accuses ERCOT and American Electric Power utility of causing property damage and business interruptions during this weekโs cold wave. โThe resulting widespread property damage from blackouts was caused by their negligence and gross negligence. AdโThe large-scale failure of Texas power companies to withstand the winter storm left multiple millions of Texans without power and heat during lethal, record-low temperatures across the state,โ said a statement from Paxtonโs office.
![โFaulty constructionโ: Plumbers, contractors receiving flood of calls for pipes bursting](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/tNMp14_ZAXhmElwp0IrevgTd4UM=/1600x900/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/02-19-2021/t_d2b4def53af442a6899866b61245befc_name_image.jpg)
โFaulty constructionโ: Plumbers, contractors receiving flood of calls for pipes bursting
Licensed plumber Mike Marsh is seeing a lot of exposed pipes in places homeowners canโt, inside their walls. After examining one pipe that burst inside the wall of a home in Sienna Marsh had this assessment, โTheyโre not insulated. Not in the days leading up to this weekโs storm and freezing temperatures but rather when the home was going up. For Ferguson and Marsh, this was just another home on their list. Marsh shared that he has received approximately 2,000 calls and messages this week.
![Carbon monoxide blamed for deaths of woman and child](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/ySpQtN1eEVQ6ZXjtp3zDvoCGN3g=/1600x900/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/02-16-2021/t_807c9d455fc440c0b31a199edb665de7_name_image.jpg)
Carbon monoxide blamed for deaths of woman and child
Southwest Houston โ A woman and child are dead after a carbon monoxide poisoning in southwest Houston, according to Houston police. On the 8300 block of La Roche Lane, investigators said the woman was trying to stay warm by running a car inside of a garage, however, fumes from the exhaust seeped inside the car as well as the connecting home. Houston police officers responded to the to conduct a welfare check around midnight and discovered the person dead in the car. Inside the home investigators found another unconscious adult and seven-year-old boy, along with a dead eight-year-old girl according to police. โYou know itโs a very difficult time a lot of people are without power I know itโs cold, but you have to be careful about using generators or cars inside of garagesโฆcarbon monoxide its odorless and it can kill people,โ said Houston police Lt. Larry Crowson.
Get these items out of your car ahead of freezing temperatures
With bitterly cold temperatures expected across much of Texas this week, hopefully you are taking steps to make sure your family, your pets, and your home are ready for the frigid weather. Before you settle in to ride out this winter blast though, you should check the inside of your car to make sure you didnโt accidentally leave something outside that could cause an expensive mess.
![Consumer expert Amy Davis tells you how to make fresh foods last longer while eliminating trips to the grocery store](https://www.click2houston.com/resizer/6f8ZwUGoskEBY93FfYfbBbwkD3o=/1600x900/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/d1vhqlrjc8h82r.cloudfront.net/04-13-2020/t_99721e5258fc427a8943d70fd43c1e78_name_image.jpg)
Consumer expert Amy Davis tells you how to make fresh foods last longer while eliminating trips to the grocery store
HOUSTON โ Health officials are urging everyone to stay home and stay healthy, even limiting trips to the grocery store. But buying enough food for your family to last more than a week is difficult. We eat perishables like produce, bread and milk and feel like we need to replenish them weekly. If your family can eat a loaf or two of bread a week, buy several and freeze them. Back in your produce drawer, you can freeze that broccoli and cabbage for up to one year.