Death toll rises, power outages skyrocket as relentless ice storm wreaks havoc in Texas, mid-South for 3rd day
The storm that has been sliding across the region is the result of a bitter blast of arctic air that was in place across the central U.S. and is expected to continue to have lingering impacts across the region through Thursday.
Trucks toppled on Texas highway by ice
FOX Weather correspondent Robert Ray shows the scene in Junction, Texas where tractor-trailers have flipped over due to a winter storm. Ice will continue to threaten the South through Thursday.
DALLAS – At least seven people have been killed in Texas and another person was killed in Arkansas as a crippling ice storm wreaked havoc on the Lone Star State and mid-South, plunging more than 300,000 utility customers into darkness.
The storm that has been sliding across the region is the result of a bitter blast of arctic air that was in place across the central U.S. and is expected to continue to have a lingering impacts across the region through Thursday.
THE HIDDEN DANGERS OF ICE STORMS. HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Treacherous travel leads to deadly crashes across Texas
White Settlement, Texas, chief of police and director of public safety Christopher Cook recorded video of ice covering the roads on North Loop 820 from Benbrook into White Settlement on Tuesday.
(Christopher Cook/Twitter)
Driving proved nearly impossible for millions of people to begin the workweek in the Lone Star State. Rain fell through the warm air aloft to the freezing surface below, which then created a sheet of ice on roads across the region from Texas to Tennessee.
"Bridges and overpasses are considered treacherous," White Settlement, Texas, police Chief Christopher Cook said in a tweet Monday. "People must slow down when approaching elevated surfaces."
WHY DO BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES FREEZE BEFORE ROADS?
Watch: Tree branches snap under weight of ice in Austin
This video shows branches snapping off a tree in Austin, Texas, during a crippling ice storm this week.
The Arlington Police Department in Texas said a 45-year-old man was killed after being thrown from his vehicle when he lost control while driving over the Green Oaks Boulevard overpass at unsafe speeds.
Police said he crashed into a guardrail, the vehicle went airborne and then rolled down an embankment. Police said they don't believe he was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.
Austin-Travis County EMS said another person was killed in a crash involving at least 10 vehicles in Austin.
And according to the Texas Department of Public Safety, a woman was driving northbound on U.S. 277 late Tuesday night when she lost control of her vehicle due to the icy conditions and crashed into a tree about 8 miles north of Eldorado.
Semi-trailer crashes into guard rail during ice storm in OK
Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper captures the moment when a large truck spun out of control and hit a highway barrier in Sequoyah County. An ice storm has brought dangerous travel conditions to the South on Tuesday. (Credit: @OHPDPS/ Twitter)
Slick roads were also blamed for a single vehicle crash on U.S. Highway 380 Tuesday morning. DPS said the driver of a Dodge Ram pickup truck lost control overturning the vehicle. Three people were reported killed and one was transported to a local hospital with injuries.
The Wolfforth Police Department was also investing a deadly crash involving a student, just outside of Lubbock.
The local school district released a statement following the crash: Ropes ISD is asking for the prayers of our community and the surrounding communities as we mourn the loss of one of our kids, who passed in a car accident this morning. We all know that our kids lives are precious, and each child is loved. Every child of God is valued, and we are extremely saddened by this loss. We pray for this family, the school and the community.
On Tuesday morning, FOX 4 Dallas reported hundreds of drivers were stuck in a 20-mile traffic backup on Interstate 20 in Palo Pinto and Parker counties because of icy road conditions.
![Ice is seen on trees in Austin, Texas.]()
Image 1 of 16Ice is seen on trees in Austin, Texas. (Cecil Habermacher)
![Ice is seen on trees in Austin, Texas.]()
Image 2 of 16Ice is seen on trees in Austin, Texas. (Cecil Habermacher)
![Ice is seen on trees in Austin, Texas.]()
Image 3 of 16Ice is seen on trees in Austin, Texas. (Cecil Habermacher)
![Ice is seen on trees and coating the ground in Collierville, Tennessee.]()
Image 4 of 16Ice is seen on trees and coating the ground in Collierville, Tennessee. (Kimberly Morrise)
![Ice is seen on trees in Collierville, Tennessee.]()
Image 5 of 16Ice is seen on trees in Collierville, Tennessee. (Kimberly Morrise)
![Ice is seen on trees in Collierville, Tennessee.]()
Image 6 of 16Ice is seen on trees in Collierville, Tennessee. (Kimberly Morrise)
![Ice is seen coating a car in Collierville, Tennessee.]()
Image 7 of 16Ice is seen coating a car in Collierville, Tennessee. (Kimberly Morrise)
![Ice is seen coating streets in Collierville, Tennessee.]()
Image 8 of 16Ice is seen coating streets in Collierville, Tennessee. (Kimberly Morrise)
![Ice is seen coating tree limbs in Collierville, Tennessee.]()
Image 9 of 16Ice is seen coating tree limbs in Collierville, Tennessee. (Kimberly Morrise)
![Several crashes were reported on Interstate 40 in Forrest City, Arkansas, on Tuesday morning.]()
Image 10 of 16Several crashes were reported on Interstate 40 in Forrest City, Arkansas, on Tuesday morning. (Forrest City, Arkansas, Fire Department/Facebook)
![Northbound I-35E was closed on and off for hours as trucks and vehicles continuously got stuck in the layer of ice, according to a tweet from the Denton, Texas, police Department.]()
Image 11 of 16Northbound I-35E was closed on and off for hours as trucks and vehicles continuously got stuck in the layer of ice, according to a tweet from the Denton, Texas, police Department. (Denton Police Department/Twitter)
![Photos taken just a half-mile apart show clear driving conditions and then a sleet-covered roadway on Lake Hefner Parkway in Oklahoma.]()
Image 12 of 16Photos taken just a half-mile apart show clear driving conditions and then a sleet-covered roadway on Lake Hefner Parkway in Oklahoma. (@Roedlseth / Twitter)
![Icy crashes in Dallas area]()
Image 13 of 16A major crash northbound Loop 820 in Arlington, Texas on Jan. 30, 2023 as freezing rain plagues the Dallas area. (Christopher Cook / @cooktx / Twitter)
![Icy crashes in Dallas area]()
Image 14 of 16A major crash northbound Loop 820 in Arlington, Texas on Jan. 30, 2023 as freezing rain plagues the Dallas area. (Christopher Cook / @cooktx / Twitter)
![Icy crashes in Dallas area]()
Image 15 of 16A major crash northbound Loop 820 in Arlington, Texas on Jan. 30, 2023 as freezing rain plagues the Dallas area. (Christopher Cook / @cooktx / Twitter)
![Icy crashes in Dallas area]()
Image 16 of 16A major crash northbound Loop 820 in Arlington, Texas on Jan. 30, 2023 as freezing rain plagues the Dallas area. (Christopher Cook / @cooktx / Twitter)
And a terrifying incident unfolded in Travis County, Texas, on Tuesday morning when a Travis County Sheriff's Office deputy was hit by a tractor-trailer and became pinned beneath one of its tires.
The deputy was freed by EMS personnel and taken to a local hospital, where he underwent surgery. Officials said he is expected to survive.
"I want to offer my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who responded and assisted this deputy in his time of dire need. Both his biological and TCSO family are relieved and thankful that he’s alive," Sheriff Sally Hernandez said. "Please, please don’t drive on these icy roadways. It’s not worth your life or the lives of the first responders who are literally putting their personal safety on the line."
HOW DOES DE-ICING WORK? INSIDE UNITED AIRLINES' WINTER OPERATIONS AT ITS LARGEST HUB
Flights canceled, schools closed
Ice storm impacts air travel in Tennessee
Glen Thomas, Director of Strategic Marketing and Communications/PIO of Memphis International Airport, provides an update on delays and winter storm conditions.
Thousands of flights into and out of the region were also heavily impacted because of the crippling effects of the ice storm, with Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) leading the pack with the most cancelations and delays.
The Federal Aviation Administration also issued a ground stop at the airport on Tuesday because of the ice, which led to numerous delays.
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) said the airport was still open, and crews are continuing to treat ice on roadways and walkways. Flight cancelations and delays continue, so passengers are urged to check their flight status before heading to the airport.
And schools across the region made the decision to let students go home early or close schools altogether. This included both the Fort Worth Independent School District and the Austin Independent School District.
In addition, Oklahoma State University made the decision to temporarily close its campus.
HERE'S WHAT TO HAVE ON HAND IF THE POWER GOES OUT DURING A WINTER STORM
Power outages skyrocket
(FOX Weather)
As ice continues to build, or accrete, this can spell trouble for power lines as they become coated in increasingly thicker layers of ice.
Ice accretions of less than a quarter-inch are generally considered to be a nuisance, but impacts start to become disruptive once amounts close in on a half-inch or more. At around a half-inch, power outages can become numerous.
On Tuesday night, about 30,000 outages were reported across the region, but by Wednesday morning, those numbers skyrocketed.
Crews standing by to restore power to hundreds of thousands of Texans
FOX Weather correspondent Robert Ray is in Abilene, Texas, where crews are standing by to make repairs and restore power to the hundreds of thousands of Texans that lost electricity during an ice storm.
Outage numbers consistently rose overnight, and the outage number was around 300,000.
"It's going to be rubbing salt in the wound because temperatures are going to stay below freezing, and those power lines are picking up more and more of an accretion of ice," FOX Weather winter storm specialist Tom Niziol said.
Power outages may lead some to resort to non-electric methods for staying warm. However, the Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services urges caution.
ATCEMS is warning people not to use stoves, ovens or grills to try and heat homes when the power goes out. Emergency officials said they had received a call for carbon monoxide exposure, which can be deadly.
Anyone using a generator for electricity to heat their homes should also follow proper safety precautions.
Additional ice accretion through Thursday morning.
Ice Storm Warnings remain in effect until at least Thursday, and they extend from Del Rio at the Texas-Mexico border northward through Fort Stockton and Midland. Ice Storm Warnings are also in effect in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, northeastward into parts of southeastern Oklahoma, central and southern Arkansas, including Little Rock, and into Memphis, Tennessee.
Winter Storm Warnings are in effect from Waco to Austin and San Antonio, while Winter Weather Advisories are in effect to the north in Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
Additional ice accretion of up to a half-inch is expected across much of central and north-central Texas and parts of southern Arkansas. A quarter-inch of ice accretion is possible across larger areas, including southern Oklahoma, most of Arkansas and far West Tennessee.
Top ice totals over the past two days.