KPRC

KPRC, Houston-area lawmakers said they are demanding answers from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) after rolling power outages left some 400,000 Texans in the dark for varying periods on Wednesday, Local 2 Investigates reported.

“It’s no secret that winter comes around once a year,” said Sen. Mike Jackson State. He said ERCOT should have better planning and procedures in place to ensure that Texans are not shy in the future. He and Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst said frozen water pipes burst in two power plants the Dallas area, causing the entire plant to close, which they say has contributed to the blackout that affected families by state.

Jackson said the security systems in these plants have led to entire plants to close when the pipes burst.

Dewhurst said the natural gas plants that were forced off-line were the oak and plants Sand Hill in north Texas.

Dewhurst told the power applied to the Texas ERCOT grid was nowhere near peak capacity. He said that other natural gas plants were supposed to provide relief, but the cold caused low pressure in supply lines so that these safeguards have been unable to kick in.

State Senator Tommy Williams, however, said the industry has failed to deliver on a promise to increase its production capacity of electricity. He told Local 2 investigation of the industry pledged to expand its production capacity when electricity was deregulated in Texas, but the events of Wednesday driving to doubt it.

Williams, who serves in national affairs and Senate finance committees, noted that most of its voters living east of the ERCOT grid, and these areas had absolutely no problem power outage Wednesday.

Governor Rick Perry said the unprecedented demand on the energy grid of the state caused a power outage. In a statement, he urged everyone to reduce energy consumption.

However, Jackson said he would push for answers to ERCOT because, “We need a better system to ensure that this does not happen again.”

As a member of the Senate Natural Resources and works councils and trade, both of which have oversight over the energy sector, Jackson said: “We’ll get into the (ERCOT)” because he said they called for more to be loaded into the grid and they could not get it.

ERCOT does not produce electricity in Texas, but he manages the flow of power that other production companies truly electric.

Jackson said that since the summer months are the peak periods, maintenance is often scheduled at plants in electricity production during the winter months, which could also cause problems in the future, given failures Wednesday.

Some viewers posted messages on Facebook theKPRC page indicating that their diet was cut several times, while others have never had their power interrupted at all.

Spring School District was forced to send students home early because of the blackout, and the Harris County Jail visits canceled for the day because the visitor’s elevators will not work if power is cut.

Houston Transtar urged drivers to exercise caution throughout the day from outages affected some traffic lights and warning signals.

The Houston office of Emergency Management has issued a notice 14 hours after he was informed that more cuts were ordered by ERCOT, if the power was expected to resume uninterrupted.

Source: http://www.click2houston.com/news/26717798/detail.html

Khou Weather

Khou Weather, Continental Airlines will cancel all flights in and out of the airport 15 hours on Thursday due to extreme weather conditions, officials said. Continental has already canceled 518 flights to and from Bush IAH 674 to Thursday and from Bush IAH Friday. Houston Intercontinental Airport (IAH) is the largest hub for Continental Airlines. METRO offers domains warming transit centers so that users have a temporary shelter from bitter cold and windy conditions. METROLift “Operation Warm” vehicles will be at 20 sites in the region and remain in place during normal working hours METRO.

Vehicles are METROLift a refuge of last resort during the night hours. METRO will decide whether to continue the service depending on weather conditions. Metro police are working with emergency management and patrols at night to ensure the safety of customers and drivers METROLift. These measures are taken to provide relief during bad weather and power outages happen all the bearing condition and should continue in the coming days.

Power outages can affect underground services as follows: Metro services and buses METROLift: The system-wide delays due to breakdowns sporadic light (flashing or no signal at the intersection). METRORAIL Service: While Metrorail has priority status with CenterPoint Energy, there is a chance that the current outrage could occur along the railway line. Service should not be interrupted, but delays may occur. The rolling blackouts and extreme weather conditions across the state Wednesday forced a number of schools to close or move classes to a new location.

HISD this power to pin Oak Middle School has been restored. Children have not been moved to another location. The power in Kashmir High School was restored and students at Key Middle School sent earlier today to return to their home campus. HISD also said there would be no football games played Friday. Fort Bend ISD, Alief ISD, Klein ISD and Cy-Fair ISD said the school is in session and will focus on failures to roll as they come.
Spring ISD will dismiss early due to power outages and the need to conserve energy. All schools dismiss three hours after the regular starting time. Transit buses will follow the early dismissal schedule. For more information on the exact time, contact your child’s school.