CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — We've got a cold front coming through South Texas, and temperatures are forecasted to drop into the 20's as we move into the weekend. It's forecasted to stay below freezing for at least twelve hours Friday morning. Saturday is going to see similar lows.
Here's everything you need to know about the weather. We will continue to update this story with more information as it comes in.
WATCHES/WARNINGS
Winter Weather Advisory: Freezing rain and sleet is possible between 9 pm Thursday night and noon Friday.
Wind Chill Warning: The wind chill will fall into the teens across the Coastal Bend. It will feel like it's between 10 and 18 degrees Friday morning.
Freeze Watch: The cold weather continues into Saturday morning. Temperatures will fall into the upper 20s once again.
SCHOOL CLOSURES/DELAYS
At this time, no schools have announced closures due to weather.
You can click here for a full list of closures and delays.
ROAD CONDITIONS
Since Tuesday, TxDOT has been preparing roads in our northern counties with brine treatment. Right now their focus is on bridges and elevated roadways.
The brine treatment serves to lower the freezing temperature of water on the roads by mixing in salt. This keeps the roads from freezing, and helps them defrost faster if they do.
Treated roads include: I-37, SH 358 (SPID), Park Road 22, SH 286 (Xtown), SH 44, Harbor Bridge, JFK Causeway. Also in Bee, Live Oak, Refugio, Goliad, Karnes counties.
Give brine crews plenty of room.
As always, TxDOT encourages caution. Don't drive unless you have to, lower your speed, and remember, "Use cruise control to lose control."
HOME PREPARATION
Our Julissa Garza came to us with a live report on what you can do to ready your home for freezing temperatures.
We'll have the full report shortly.
POWER OUTAGES
After last February's disaster, all eyes are on ERCOT to keep the heaters on. Although improvements have been made to winterize the grid, the chance of power outages is still present.
Larry Jones with AEP Texas said those who rely on electricity for medical reasons should make sure that they have alternate sources of power incase of pockets of power outages.
"Customers on life support or other medical equipment that rely on electricity should always have a backup plan in the event of an extended outage," Jones said. "We are going to do everything possible to quickly restore power, however we can't guarantee how long that restoration effort can take."
WARMING CENTERS
According to forecasts, the winter storm is going to bring below freezing temperatures, cold rain, and sleet. In response, the city of Corpus Christi is going to be opening warming centers to those in need.
The following warming centers will be open 6:00 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 3rd and will remain open through the weekend:
- Broadmoor Senior Center
- Ethel Eyerly Senior Center
- La Retama Library
- Ben F. McDonald Library
The warming center at the Richard M. Borchard Fairgrounds will open Thursday, Feb. 3rd at 8:00 p.m. and stay open until 12:00 p.m. on Saturday.
AND DON'T FORGET THE TURTLES
Between many wildlife organizations, like the ARK, PINS, the Texas State Aquarium the Texas Sea life Center and many more, about 13,000 cold stunned turtles were rescued from the Texas gulf.
"At one point, we probably had 500 turtles here, I would say, if I had to guess," said Amanda Terry, the Director of the Rehabilitation of Texas Sealife Center.
Out of the 13,000, only 4,500 were released and about 9,000 died.
"Dehydration, exposure to the elements, predacious either with the coyotes eating them alive or the birds pecking at the eyes and they bleed out, which is really grizzly. It's even disturbing for some our personnel that go out on search and rescue efforts," said Donna Shaver, a Sea Turtle Biologist with the Padre Island National Seashore.
With another arctic blast on its way, experts are preparing for another round of cold stunned sea turtles.
"All our tubs are lined up and all our paperwork ready to get filled out, so we'll know when they start or when they should start to come in and then we'll start our patrol," Terry added.
Shaver goes step by step on what PINS plans are.
"First, we go out by foot. It's cheaper and logistically easier to deploy, so we'll go out and search. If we start to find a lot by foot, then we'll get the boats out and it will be all hands on deck," said Shaver.
While community volunteers are not being called on just yet, experts warn--if you are out and see a stunned turtle in need, do not try to warm it up yourself.
"Sometimes, people will try to help the turtle by blasting their heater on it and that could actually be pretty damaging. We gradually warm them up," Walker added.
They ask that you call 1-866-TURTLE-5.
For the latest updates on coronavirus in the Coastal Bend, click here.
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