Introduction
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Dallas will activate its emergency operations center Saturday morning as a winter storm brings frigid temperatures and icy conditions to the area.
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City crews are prepping major roads and overpasses while a large emergency shelter with a capacity of 900 people is set to open in Fair Park on Friday.
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Officials urged residents to stay off roadways, protect pipes and bring pets indoors to avoid accidents and infrastructure damage.
dallas – Dallas city leaders announced a sweeping emergency plan Wednesday as a winter storm is expected to bring frigid and icy conditions to the region starting Friday night.
timeline
The city’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) will be activated at 7 a.m. Saturday to coordinate public safety, transportation and infrastructure recovery efforts.
“Our focus is simple. We want to keep our residents safe,” the city manager told reporters at a multi-agency news conference. “Our teams have been closely monitoring the weather forecast to ensure we activate our winter weather action plan.”
roads and infrastructure
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Transportation and Public Works Director Gus Concalli said the city is taking a “three-pronged approach” that includes pretreating bridges and overpasses with salt water and sand. Concalli noted that 50 “ice force” vehicles are on standby, but warned that residential streets will not be sanded unless requested by emergency personnel.
Dallas Water Utility urges residents to wrap exposed pipes and locate main water shutoff valves. Meanwhile, health officials have warned that while Friday’s collections should go ahead as planned, there could be significant delays to garbage and recycling collections on Monday and Tuesday if road conditions deteriorate.
“We are fully prepared. This is what we do,” Dallas Fire Chief Justin Ball said at a news conference. “If you don’t want us to be so busy, stay home. That’s the advice. Stay home because there’s going to be a lot of crashes.”
Shelters and vulnerable groups
To protect the city’s homeless residents, a severe weather shelter at Fair Park’s Grand Building will be open Friday starting at 4 p.m. Emergency Management Director Kevin Oden said the site can accommodate 800 to 900 people, and backup buildings will be identified if capacity exceeds 75%.
Residents who need to go to a shelter can call 311 and be picked up by the Dallas Street Response Team.
public safety warning
Fire Chief Justin Ball and police officials urged residents to stay off the roads to prevent accidents. Ball also issued a stern warning about home heating safety.
“Don’t light fires inside the house … don’t cook on your balcony,” Ball said. He reminded residents to open fireplace vents and avoid using candles or outdoor grills indoors during a power outage.
Dallas Animal Services confirmed they will be on patrol 24/7 to respond to reports of abandoned animals. Under city ordinance, pet owners are required to bring animals indoors during extreme weather.
lessons from the past
what are they talking about
Looking back on 2021’s deadly winter storm, city leaders emphasize improving coordination and infrastructure. Officials noted that some recreation centers are already equipped with emergency generators that can serve as warming stations where residents can charge their phones and stay warm if the local power grid goes down.
“We have systems in place to make sure those communication links…are intact,” the city manager said. “Planning for an event like this does not start today.”
source
The information in this article comes from a press conference held Wednesday by Dallas city leaders.
