ENERGY EMERGENCY ALERT - FEBRUARY 14, 2021
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), the city’s wholesale power provider, have alerted the City of Smithville to the potential for statewide rolling power outages beginning late Sunday evening and Monday morning. The possible rolling outages are planned to last for 20 minutes and are implemented to maintain overall reliability on the statewide power grid. The cold temperatures are causing power generation levels to lower operating reserves below acceptable levels. Customers across the state are being asked to conserve. Please manage the temperature in your home over the next few days so as to conserve energy as much as possible. If an outage lasts more than 30-minutes, contact the Smithville PD at 512-237-3228. Critical infrastructure required to maintain basic services such as the City of Smithville’s water supply and wastewater lift stations are backed up by emergency generators. City police, fire, and public works employees are out and about and monitoring weather conditions. Please share this message and encourage widespread energy conservation. Click on the following link for ERCOT energy conservation tips during severe winter weather --> http://www.ercot.com/news/releases/show/225151
