KUT Radio, Austin's NPR Station
Austin-area schools announce Tuesday closures as extreme cold and hazardous road conditions remain
By Nathan Bernier, Luz Moreno-Lozano
January 25, 2026 at 11:27 AM CST
Several Austin-area schools, including Austin ISD and the University of Texas, have canceled classes Tuesday as roads remain unsafe for students, teachers and staff.
"While driving conditions are improving across much of the district, hazardous spots remain in shaded and higher areas," Austin ISD officials said in a statement. "Those unsafe conditions are unlikely to improve and could even worsen overnight as melted patches refreeze."
Travis County facilities and offices, including courthouses, will also be closed because of the weather Tuesday. City of Austin offices, libraries and other facilities will operate on a two-hour delay.
Continued cancellations and delays of school and municipal operations come after the extreme cold warning for Central Texas was extended to Tuesday morning.
(1200x1000, AR: 1.2)
National Weather Service forecasters said dangerously cold temperatures in the single digits and teens could persist through 9 a.m.
Austin started to thaw out a bit Monday, with highs getting just above freezing in the afternoon. However, some areas in the Hill Country remained below freezing.
Even though the National Weather Service said frozen precipitation has ended for the area, patches of ice created dangerous road conditions on Monday. Officials encouraged people to stay off the streets as crews continued to treat them throughout the area.
At least one person is confirmed to have died from the cold, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said during a press briefing Sunday morning. A man was found dead in the parking lot of a permanently closed Shell station along the southbound I-35 service road near 38 1/2 Street.
Heading into the week, temperatures will get to above freezing before a front comes in Friday, bringing another round of cold air.
Beware of slippery roads and sidewalks, officials say
Since temperatures began to dip Saturday, Austin-Travis County EMS medics have responded to 35 cold-related illnesses, including the man who died. Those calls can encompass frostbite, hypothermia and other symptoms of cold exposure.
ATCEMS also responded to 32 car crashes with injuries in the same time period. The city of Austin said those who have to drive Monday should use extreme caution. People can check road conditions at DriveTexas.org before heading out.
"Keeping roads clear allows emergency responders to operate safely," officials said in a written statement.
Christa Stedman, a spokesperson for ATCEMS, said in just the last few days medics have responded to more than 100 falls, although not all were weather-related. They saw a noticeable increase in those calls Monday as ice melted from roads and sidewalks. At least two injuries were sledding-related.
"We know that people have been cooped up for a few days and the sun is out, so there is a need to get outside," she said. "But we want people to remember there is still a bunch of ice out there, and it's still very slippery."
Stedman said those who are planning to be out should wear sensible shoes, take short, small steps, and be aware of their surroundings. They should also dress in layers, including a hat, face mask and gloves, to protect from the cold, the NWS said.
Alfonso stomps on an icy section of his apartment complex parking lot in east Austin. (3000x2000, AR: 1.5)
Schools announce closures
Georgetown ISD canceled classes and all school activities Tuesday. Other area school districts have followed suit, including Burnet, Del Valle, Dripping Springs, Eanes, Elgin, Hays, Hutto, Lago Vista, Lake Travis, Leander, Pflugerville, Round Rock, Taylor and Wimberley.
San Marcos CISD campuses and offices will operate on a 2-hour delay for Tuesday.
Austin Community College, Southwestern University and Concordia University Texas will remain closed Tuesday as well. St. Edward's University and Huston-Tillotson University will offer remote operations and virtual classes on Tuesday.
The Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired will be closed Monday and Tuesday.
CapMetro to offer limited service Tuesday
After suspending service Sunday and offering a limited service Monday, CapMetro said it would operate with a delayed start again Tuesday. Limited service starts at noon "for bus, rail, pickup and bikeshare."
CapMetro Access trips will be provide essential, life-sustaining trips before noon, with all other trips beginning at noon.
CapMetro officials said the intent is to run service through tomorrow evening, depending on road and resource conditions.
Dozens of flights canceled
More than 200 flights were canceled Sunday at Austin's airport. (3279x2459, AR: 1.3334688897925986)
More than 200 flights were canceled at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport on Sunday. The airport remained open, but the runways and taxiways were covered in slush. Makeshift snowplows — trucks with shovels attached to the front — were clearing concrete surfaces.
The airport was also open Monday, but travelers should check their flight information for the latest updates.
More power outages possible
Austin Energy said crews responded overnight Saturday into Sunday to isolated outages related to the storm. The public utility's outage map showed a few thousand customers without electricity at one point on Sunday, but by Monday evening, only around a dozen customers were impacted by outages. Austin Energy said outages could increase in the coming days as ice melts.
"We are concerned that over the coming hours and maybe even a couple of days, some of the trees that are stressed, maybe they're dead trees that could still fall over if they're weighted down with ice and there are wind gusts that come through," Austin Energy General Manager Stuart Reilly said Sunday.
"We do expect there to be some sporadic issues," he said. "We have not seen a lot in terms of vegetation impacts from trees or tree limbs. There have been a few."
Cold shelters will remain open
Roofs and roads are covered with ice in a Buda neighborhood on Sunday. (3876x2584, AR: 1.5)
Three libraries — the Central Library, Terrazas Branch and Little Walnut Creek Branch — had extended hours and served as warming centers Monday and will continue Tuesday.
Austin's cold weather shelters remain open through Wednesday morning and have welcomed record numbers of people, according to city officials. Overnight on Sunday, 879 people took shelter across the city's facilities.
Watson said transportation was available for those needing to reach a shelter.
"We will pick you up. We'll drive you to the shelter. We'll feed you while you're there, and most importantly, we'll keep people warm and safe," Watson said.
One city shelter on Saturday night was too short staffed to prepare enough food, said David Gray, the city's homeless strategy officer, but they have since returned to normal.
"Our shelter operators are prepared to provide meals for anybody in our city shelters and everybody who comes to our overnight cold weather shelters," Gray said. He said they received additional donations from H-E-B, Walmart and individual Austin residents.
"As far as meals go, we are good to go," Gray said.
City officials also addressed rumors circulating online about Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations connected to cold weather shelters.
In a statement Saturday night, the city said they were told by regional ICE representatives that there are no operations focused on warming centers and that agents are not staging in Austin for special enforcement actions. KUT News has asked an ICE spokesperson to verify the city's statement.
Watch Sunday's city and county news conference below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE7czCbZBaE
"While driving conditions are improving across much of the district, hazardous spots remain in shaded and higher areas," Austin ISD officials said in a statement. "Those unsafe conditions are unlikely to improve and could even worsen overnight as melted patches refreeze."
Travis County facilities and offices, including courthouses, will also be closed because of the weather Tuesday. City of Austin offices, libraries and other facilities will operate on a two-hour delay.
Continued cancellations and delays of school and municipal operations come after the extreme cold warning for Central Texas was extended to Tuesday morning.
(1200x1000, AR: 1.2)
National Weather Service forecasters said dangerously cold temperatures in the single digits and teens could persist through 9 a.m.
Austin started to thaw out a bit Monday, with highs getting just above freezing in the afternoon. However, some areas in the Hill Country remained below freezing.
Even though the National Weather Service said frozen precipitation has ended for the area, patches of ice created dangerous road conditions on Monday. Officials encouraged people to stay off the streets as crews continued to treat them throughout the area.
At least one person is confirmed to have died from the cold, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said during a press briefing Sunday morning. A man was found dead in the parking lot of a permanently closed Shell station along the southbound I-35 service road near 38 1/2 Street.
Heading into the week, temperatures will get to above freezing before a front comes in Friday, bringing another round of cold air.
Beware of slippery roads and sidewalks, officials say
Since temperatures began to dip Saturday, Austin-Travis County EMS medics have responded to 35 cold-related illnesses, including the man who died. Those calls can encompass frostbite, hypothermia and other symptoms of cold exposure.
ATCEMS also responded to 32 car crashes with injuries in the same time period. The city of Austin said those who have to drive Monday should use extreme caution. People can check road conditions at DriveTexas.org before heading out.
"Keeping roads clear allows emergency responders to operate safely," officials said in a written statement.
Christa Stedman, a spokesperson for ATCEMS, said in just the last few days medics have responded to more than 100 falls, although not all were weather-related. They saw a noticeable increase in those calls Monday as ice melted from roads and sidewalks. At least two injuries were sledding-related.
"We know that people have been cooped up for a few days and the sun is out, so there is a need to get outside," she said. "But we want people to remember there is still a bunch of ice out there, and it's still very slippery."
Stedman said those who are planning to be out should wear sensible shoes, take short, small steps, and be aware of their surroundings. They should also dress in layers, including a hat, face mask and gloves, to protect from the cold, the NWS said.
Alfonso stomps on an icy section of his apartment complex parking lot in east Austin. (3000x2000, AR: 1.5)
Schools announce closures
Georgetown ISD canceled classes and all school activities Tuesday. Other area school districts have followed suit, including Burnet, Del Valle, Dripping Springs, Eanes, Elgin, Hays, Hutto, Lago Vista, Lake Travis, Leander, Pflugerville, Round Rock, Taylor and Wimberley.
San Marcos CISD campuses and offices will operate on a 2-hour delay for Tuesday.
Austin Community College, Southwestern University and Concordia University Texas will remain closed Tuesday as well. St. Edward's University and Huston-Tillotson University will offer remote operations and virtual classes on Tuesday.
The Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired will be closed Monday and Tuesday.
CapMetro to offer limited service Tuesday
After suspending service Sunday and offering a limited service Monday, CapMetro said it would operate with a delayed start again Tuesday. Limited service starts at noon "for bus, rail, pickup and bikeshare."
CapMetro Access trips will be provide essential, life-sustaining trips before noon, with all other trips beginning at noon.
CapMetro officials said the intent is to run service through tomorrow evening, depending on road and resource conditions.
Dozens of flights canceled
More than 200 flights were canceled Sunday at Austin's airport. (3279x2459, AR: 1.3334688897925986)
More than 200 flights were canceled at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport on Sunday. The airport remained open, but the runways and taxiways were covered in slush. Makeshift snowplows — trucks with shovels attached to the front — were clearing concrete surfaces.
The airport was also open Monday, but travelers should check their flight information for the latest updates.
More power outages possible
Austin Energy said crews responded overnight Saturday into Sunday to isolated outages related to the storm. The public utility's outage map showed a few thousand customers without electricity at one point on Sunday, but by Monday evening, only around a dozen customers were impacted by outages. Austin Energy said outages could increase in the coming days as ice melts.
"We are concerned that over the coming hours and maybe even a couple of days, some of the trees that are stressed, maybe they're dead trees that could still fall over if they're weighted down with ice and there are wind gusts that come through," Austin Energy General Manager Stuart Reilly said Sunday.
"We do expect there to be some sporadic issues," he said. "We have not seen a lot in terms of vegetation impacts from trees or tree limbs. There have been a few."
Cold shelters will remain open
Roofs and roads are covered with ice in a Buda neighborhood on Sunday. (3876x2584, AR: 1.5)
Three libraries — the Central Library, Terrazas Branch and Little Walnut Creek Branch — had extended hours and served as warming centers Monday and will continue Tuesday.
Austin's cold weather shelters remain open through Wednesday morning and have welcomed record numbers of people, according to city officials. Overnight on Sunday, 879 people took shelter across the city's facilities.
Watson said transportation was available for those needing to reach a shelter.
"We will pick you up. We'll drive you to the shelter. We'll feed you while you're there, and most importantly, we'll keep people warm and safe," Watson said.
One city shelter on Saturday night was too short staffed to prepare enough food, said David Gray, the city's homeless strategy officer, but they have since returned to normal.
"Our shelter operators are prepared to provide meals for anybody in our city shelters and everybody who comes to our overnight cold weather shelters," Gray said. He said they received additional donations from H-E-B, Walmart and individual Austin residents.
"As far as meals go, we are good to go," Gray said.
City officials also addressed rumors circulating online about Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations connected to cold weather shelters.
In a statement Saturday night, the city said they were told by regional ICE representatives that there are no operations focused on warming centers and that agents are not staging in Austin for special enforcement actions. KUT News has asked an ICE spokesperson to verify the city's statement.
Watch Sunday's city and county news conference below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE7czCbZBaE