Icy roadways and freezing temperatures may have closed county offices, but Williamson County emergency responders and essential employees continued to work keeping residents safe.
Prior to the storm, Williamson County’s Road and Bridge Division pre-staged sand at EMS stations so crews could spread it when needed due to icing on driveways and walkways. They also pre-positioned barricades at locations where roads might need to be closed due to flooding or icing. During the early morning hours on Thursday and Friday, Williamson County’s Road and Bridge Division treated county roads and bridges with sand and de-icing material. The county ordered twice as much sand and de-icing material than in the previous year.
Williamson County Emergency Communications had 201 calls for service on Thursday. There were 30 fire calls, 84 law enforcement calls and 87 calls for EMS. The Sheriff’s Office responded to a few crashes caused by icy roads.
The county’s Mobile Outreach Team (MOT), who help those in mental health crisis, had fewer than 20 calls for service during this winter weather event compared to more than 600 during Winter Storm Uri. They helped one homeless person with emergency shelter.
The EMS Community Health Paramedics (CHP) checked on their medically vulnerable patients. They were able to help one resident in the Coupland area to get their generator working when Oncor had power outages in their area.
In addition to responding to crashes and reporting on road conditions, the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office opened the doors of their headquarters, 508 Rock Street in Georgetown, as a warming and charging station for those without power. That warming and charging station will remain open as long as it is needed.
Williamson County’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM) activated their Emergency Operation Center (EOC) on Wednesday night ahead of the storm. They held numerous conference calls with the National Weather Service, cities, school districts and utility providers in order to determine if there were any unmet needs. OEM works with the state to request equipment or resources that cannot be filled within the county. To keep the public updated on the current weather situation, they sent out three emergency alerts through Warn Central Texas. Residents can receive emergency alerts by registering at warncentraltexas.org.
Williamson County responders will continue to monitor conditions and roadways through the rest of today and Saturday morning. The county’s local disaster declaration will end at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 4.
“We want to thank the residents of Williamson County for listening to our messages and staying home and staying safe,” said County Judge Bill Gravell.