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Snow, Wintry Mix Falls Across Central Texas

Siblings Ashtyn and Caden Gunning build a snowman on Sunday.
Julia Reihs
/
KUT
Snow fell in Austin on Sunday, spurring some people to build snowmen.

Update Sunday at 6:20 p.m.:

Pflugerville ISD has announced that school is closed on Monday. All classes and activities have been canceled. School officials say they are concerned about hazardous conditions on the road during the Monday morning commute after Sunday's wintry weather.

Update Sunday at 3:20 p.m.:

Austin Energy says it is dealing with multiple active power outages because of the wintry weather and cannot estimate when customers will get their power back.

Kelly Heilman, Molly Bolf and Haley Mitchell walk down a snowy street.
Julia Reihs
/
KUT
Kelly Heilman, Molly Bolf and Haley Mitchell walk down a snowy street.

The utility says it has called in additional crews and is determining what repairs are needed. During the day Sunday, as many as 37,000 customers have been without power.

Austin is activating Cold Weather Shelters tonight because of the wintry weather and low temperatures.

Single adult women and men are asked to arrive at the Central Library on Cesar Chavez by 6 p.m. for COVID-19 screening and registration. Families with children are asked to arrive at the Downtown Salvation Army Shelter on East 8th Street by 6 p.m.

Registration is first come, first served and will end by 8 p.m. People bringing pets will not be turned away.

Update Sunday at 2:50 p.m.:

Pflugerville ISD has announced a 90-minute delay for Monday morning because of the wintry weather and possible hazardous driving conditions early in the morning. Buses will run 90 minutes later than usual but still on their regular routes. Classes on Monday will end at the usual time.

Update Sunday at 2 p.m.:

Austin Energy says the snowfall has led to power outages throughout the city. A total of 26,000 customers are without power.

Crews are working to fix the outages. A map of the outages and updates can be found here.

Update Sunday at 12:45 p.m.:

Comal and Caldwell counties have been added to the Winter Weather Advisory and are expected to see a dusting or an inch or so of snow.

The National Weather Servicesays it's heard reports of "Thundersnow" in Northeast Austin, and it is encouraging people to avoid traveling today because of heavy snowfall and slush on roads.

Snow falls at the UT intramural fields in Austin during a winter storm warning.
Julia Reihs
/
KUT
Snow falls at the UT intramural fields.

Austin Parks and Recreation closed year-round city pools at noon and they will have a delayed opening Monday at 10 a.m. because of the weather.

A pedestrian walks by the UT Austin campus as it snows.
Julia Reihs.
/
KUT
A pedestrian walks by the UT Austin campus as it snows.

Update Sunday at 10 a.m.:

Travis County is now under a Winter Storm Warning through midnight Sunday. Snow has started falling and some accumulations are being reported.

The area could get between 2 and 3 inches of snow. The National Weather Service is warning of hazardous road conditions.

Earlier:

Central Texas could be in for some slushy snow on Sunday.

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning for Burnet, Lee, Llano and Williamson counties starting at 6 a.m. Sunday and lasting until midnight. The area could get up to 3 inches of heavy, wet snow.

A warning means that hazardous weather is pretty likely to happen.

A Winter Weather Advisoryhas been issued for Bastrop, Blanco, Gillespie, Hays and Travis counties from 6 a.m. Sunday through midnight. The forecast calls for up to an inch of wet snow.

An advisory is less serious than a warning and means the weather event could cause what the National Weather Service calls a "significant inconvenience."

UT Austin says it will keep the school community notified of any weather-related changes to normal operating procedures via email, text, social media and the university's emergency web page.

Needless to say, Central Texas doesn't get snow very often. The area saw a dusting of light snow a little less than a year ago. It didn't cause any real problems except for lots and lots of dirty cars.

Jennifer Stayton is the local host for NPR's "Morning Edition" on KUT. Got a tip? Email her at jstayton@kut.org. Follow her on X @jenstayton.
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