A large electrical network spanning 14 states, from North Dakota to Texas, ordered continuous blackouts amid an explosion of extreme cold that hit the south.
Southwest Power Pool (SPP), based in Little Rock, Arkansas, ordered blackouts on Monday, declaring an energy emergency. The extreme climate had already cut off the power of millions of homes in Texas, where temperatures reached record levels.
The power grid connects utilities in Oklahoma and Kansas, as well as parts of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Nebraska and New Mexico, the New York Times reported.
The network operator said in a statement on Twitter this was the first time he had ordered massive blackouts, and he was doing so to avoid further uncontrolled interruptions.
“It is a last resort, which we understand to overwhelm our member utilities and the customers they serve, but it is a measure we are consciously taking to prevent circumstances from getting worse, which could result in uncontrolled outages of even greater magnitude” SPP executive chairman and chief operating officer, Lanny NIckell, said in the statement.
The SPP is not alone in ordering blackouts due to the winter storm.
The Texas Electric Reliability Council (ERCOT) issued continuous blackouts in Texas on Monday, and power supplier Oncor told customers that electricity supply was “less than demand”. The cold wave also caused T-Mobile’s disruptions in the state.
As of 2pm on Monday, at least 2.8 million Texans have suffered power cuts, according to PowerOutage.us.
Dan Woodfin, senior director of the Texas Electric Reliability Council, which manages the state’s power grid, said at a news conference that the outages are expected to continue until Tuesday, according to Bloomberg.
“We anticipate that we will need to continue with these disruptions controlled for the rest of today and perhaps throughout tomorrow,” he said.
Bill Magness, head of the Texas Electric Reliability Council, told Bloomberg that all network operators and electricity companies in the state were “struggling to restore power” as quickly as possible.
Extreme cold and snow are rare in Texas, and the state’s National Weather Service, based in Midland, tweeted on Monday which recorded a temperature of minus 2 degrees Fahrenheit, the coldest temperature in the region in 32 years.
All 254 counties in Texas were under warnings about the winter weather on Sunday night, and President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency, giving Texas help with shelter and mass care.
The Department of Energy also issued an emergency order on Monday allowing Texas power plants to produce more electricity to help with power cuts, Bloomberg reported.
The Washington Post Capital Weather Gang reported that the storm and extreme cold across Texas and other parts of the south, including Oklahoma and Missouri, were caused by a disturbance in the polar vortex in January.