Whether it’s too much or too little water, high pressure or low pressure, or just the wrong way, water has been a big problem for Texans during this ongoing catastrophe.
About 590 local water systems in 141 counties have reported service interruptions, affecting approximately 11.8 million residents, state officials said.
See how water problems have made an already difficult crisis even worse for millions.
Fire departments, hospitals and airports are all struggling
With burst pipes, no generators in operation and even frozen hydrants, water pressure across the state has been reached.
For firefighters at the San Antonio Fire Department, low water pressure because of the cold means they have to do more with less.
“Our normal attack would involve several hoses and a lot of water in the fire, so obviously we just had to adjust it,” said spokesman Joseph Arrington.
Meanwhile, at Houston’s Hobby Airport, flights were canceled or diverted due to a lack of water.
Hospitals are also not safe from problems. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo called low water pressure “a huge problem” for hospitals and asked the community to stop dripping taps in an effort to keep water pressure high.
Some are using melted snow and pool water to drink and flush
The low water pressure made basic necessities difficult, such as using the bathroom.
At McMurry University in Abilene, residents are using melted snow and water from the campus pool to flush, with members of the football team and other volunteers taking water to the dorms.
But the lack of water also means that the campus had to shut down a boiler in a residential complex, which provides heating for these dorms. As a result, the school opened a heating installation for residents.
And they are not the only ones to get creative.
In Crestview, Smita Pande told CNN that she and others may have to use melted snow to drink water when the bottled water runs out.
“We didn’t anticipate that the water would be cut, but as soon as it did, we assumed the ‘worst case’ kind of thing and just took the snow off the porch and put it in kettles and pots to use as drinking water, in case we don’t get the water back so soon, “said Pande. “If the power outage is any indication of how long it will last, then we will boil snow for a while.”
Brenda Aly of San Antonio found herself in a similar situation, using a neighbor’s pool water and snow to fill bathroom tanks and wash dishes.
“Every now and then, we sit in our cars in the garage to warm up and charge our phones,” she said. “After passing through our bottled water, our only option for drinking water will be snow, until our water comes back or the stores open.”
As the pipes freeze, the roofs collapse
The problem does not stop with hydration, however.
Sandra Erickson, who lives in Friendswood, just outside Houston, said it was so cold in the house that she rented it with her husband that the pipes burst – causing the three-bedroom roof to collapse.
“We could hear water running between the walls,” said Erickson.
The power just flashed, she said on Wednesday, but they had been without it since Monday. She also doesn’t have much faith that she will continue.
“We are at home and we have the fireplace to keep warm,” she said. “We have nowhere to go.”
And they are not alone. Hidalgo, the Harris County judge, said more than a million households lack electricity and are therefore experiencing water problems because some pipes have burst with the cold.
“So, we are seeing the side and after effects of energy. The pipes, for example, some burst because of the water freezing, ”she said. “Others have low pressure because the generators that support the pressure are turned off. So many of our cities … are reporting problems.”
About 7 million Texans are under the guidance of boiling water
On Wednesday, about 7 million Texans are affected by boiling water warnings, said Commissioner Toby Baker of the Texas Environmental Quality Commission – a particularly dismal number, considering that many may be without power to boil water.
More than 260,000 people in the state have been affected by non-operational water systems, he said, a number that has increased dramatically in the past 24 hours.
In Waco, Mayor Dillon Meek is asking residents to cut back on water use after a false rumor said the water would be cut off permanently.
The city’s system needs time to recharge, Meek said, and if capacity drops again at treatment plants, the city will face boiling water warnings.
Meanwhile, in Galveston, major waterline breaks and system failures put water supplies at extremely low levels.
Even when the water returns, the city will be on a boiling water alert, a statement said.
CNN’s Karma Hassan, Paul P. Murphy, Keith Allen, Andy Rose and Joe Sutton contributed to this report.