Thousands of Texans face freezing temperatures without power as Winter Storm Fern sweeps across multiple states, leaving more than 730,000 utility customers in the dark nationwide as of Sunday morning.
The bitter cold has hit East Texas particularly hard, with outage numbers fluctuating throughout the weekend. By Sunday morning, Entergy reported approximately 71,095 customer outages across their service area, including 660 in Texas. This follows Saturday’s peak when power outages in the state topped 50,000, primarily affecting east Texas counties including Tarrant, Bowie, and Shelby.
The situation has prompted a federal response. U.S. Energy Secretary Wright issued an emergency order on January 25 to secure Texas’ grid, with the Department of Energy stating the measure aims to “save lives and lower costs” during the dangerous weather event.
Widespread Impact
By 9 a.m. Sunday, the national picture looked grim. More than 730,000 utility customers across the country were without electricity, with Texas accounting for 134,000 of those affected, according to ABC News tracking.
Oncor, one of Texas’ largest electric delivery companies, reported over 21,000 customers without power early Sunday morning. How bad is it? Most outages are concentrated in East Texas south of Tyler, though approximately 4,000 customers in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex are also affected.
“Customers can also sign up for MyOncor alerts by texting REG to 66267 and we will send them personalized notifications… about outage impacts to their specific address,” said Andrew Clark, an Oncor spokesperson. He urged residents to prepare for potentially extended outages, recommending families “put together a family emergency plan, as well as storm safety kit, blankets, bottled water… flashlights, just in case you need to withstand an extended time without power.”
The storm’s impact extends beyond Texas. Entergy’s morning update showed thousands without power across multiple states, with 2,940 customers affected in Mississippi, 2,750 in Louisiana, and 340 in Arkansas.
This winter emergency comes almost exactly five years after the February 2021 power crisis that crippled Texas’ grid for days and resulted in hundreds of deaths. That disaster prompted reforms to winterize the state’s power infrastructure, but Winter Storm Fern is providing a stern test of those improvements.
For residents facing outages, the coming days will be a race between restoration efforts and the forecast, with temperatures expected to remain below freezing in many affected areas through midweek. The emergency declaration should help mobilize additional resources, but for thousands of shivering Texans, help can’t come soon enough.
