Disaster declaration in Texas amid ice storm & power outages

The storm poses an ‘imminent threat’ to people and property, according to the governor

Snow and ice are cleared from the tarmac at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in Grapevine, Texas, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022 © AP / LM Otero

Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration in 17 counties across the state on Thursday as an ice storm led to power outages and hundreds of flight cancellations.

In a statement, Abbott said the ice storm “poses an imminent threat of severe property damage, injury, or loss of life” in the 17 counties, including Dallas. The rest of the counties listed by Abbott are Bosque, Delta, Denton, Ellis, Fannin, Grayson, Hopkins, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Lamar, Navarro, Rains, Red River, Rockwall, and Williamson. “I do hereby declare a state of disaster in the previously listed counties based on the existence of such threat,” 

Abbott authorized the use of “all available resources of state government and of political subdivisions that are reasonably necessary to cope with this disaster.”

The extreme weather conditions have led to local power outages across Texas and other states, with 350,000 homes and businesses reportedly losing power across the US on Thursday.

More than 1,400 flights to and from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport were also canceled on Thursday, with another 156 delayed due to the storm. Nationwide, more than 3,600 flights were canceled.

“The winter storm is having a significant impact on our DFW operation. Due to conditions at the airport, the remainder of flights bound for DFW this evening have been canceled and we anticipate additional impact through tomorrow morning,” said American Airlines in a statement.

Last year, Texas suffered an extreme ice storm disaster which left more than 4.5 million houses without electricity, created major water, food, and supply shortages, and caused over 240 deaths.