By Rob Baker, City of Jefferson Mayor
The extremely cold weather that the State of Texas is currently experiencing is a widespread event that we haven’t seen in over 100 years.
We have had citizens asking great weather-related questions so I thought I could weigh in on them:
1) Water pressure – obviously in cold conditions, we all worry about burst pipes. We often see that occur when it is getting colder or when it is getting warmer after a cold spell. If there is too much water pressure in the system, it could inadvertently cause pipes to burst. We have purposely turned the town’s water pressure down a few notches to prevent this. In times like this, Low water pressure is better than no water pressure and burst pipes
2) Electricity – SWEPCO is performing rotating “brownouts” in an effort to minimize problems during this week’s weather event. Note: Power is never cut off from water-sewer plants, nursing homes, and hospitals. Please minimize your electrical use this week so we can all do our part
3) Heat – nighttime temps have gone below zero recently so mornings will start out quite chilly. Your heating units will certainly struggle to keep up but give it time. As the day goes on and outside temps rise a bit, the units will gain a little momentum and get warmer. Please do not put your thermostat at 80+ degrees expecting that to solve the problem. There isn’t a heating system in the state able to keep up with these prolonged temps so we should plan on bundling up a bit even while inside
4) Jefferson Transportation Center – I have been in constant contact with Judge LaFleur, Sheriff Capps (who is also the Marion County Emergency Coordinator), and Chief Perez. This facility has NOT been activated for this week’s weather event at this time. I will let you know if that changes. There is a concern about getting people there during poor road conditions. All surrounding counties are warning citizens not to get out on the streets. This is a Stay at Home weather event, and the worst thing we can do is have hundreds of people on the treacherous roads trying to get to town. We also have the threat of COVID-19 spreading if we put several hundred people in one building at the same time. The Jefferson Police Department and Marion County Sheriff’s Department are doing welfare checks throughout the day each day.
I would like to thank all of the first responders for the dedication and support that they provide to us, especially during tough times like we are currently experiencing. Please make sure to thank your local police, sheriff and fire departments, doctors, nurses, TxDOT, linemen, etc. Plus, a huge thanks to Allen Whatley and his team at the city water department for doing what they do each day and keeping our water and sewer systems running at all hours of the day and night. In these conditions, it’s a real challenge for each of these groups to keep up with hundreds of calls and requests. Keep it up, Folks. We appreciate what you do to provide our safety and well-being.
The next few days will be a challenge as more snow and ice is expected thru Friday, with thawing temps not getting to us until the weekend.
Please check on friends and neighbors to make sure people are doing ok during this weather event.