Winter Storm in Texas, December 12 to 13, 2000

Bitterly cold arctic winds swept down on South Central Texas during the morning and early afternoon of December 12th. Temperatures that had warmed in many locations to the 70s plunged rapidly into the 40s and 50s shortly after the front's arrival. Northerly winds gusting to 30 and 35 mph further emphasized this dramatic temperature change. By mid afternoon, temperatures over the Texas Hill Country had fallen below the freezing mark and light rain and drizzle had begun to change into freezing rain and freezing drizzle. By the late afternoon, a thin layer of ice was reported over Hill Country bridges, overpasses and elevated highways. However, because the soils over South Central Texas had been quite warm for the previous several weeks, no accumulations on the ground were indicated until late in the evening period. The combination of freezing rain, freezing drizzle, and sleet continued to spread across the area through the late afternoon and nighttime hours, reaching the Austin area near 4 pm and the San Antonio area near 10 pm. In anticipation of the winter storm threat, many area schools and universities, as well as city and county agencies and private businesses closed down early on the afternoon of the 12th and planned to open late on the morning of the 13th. State offices in Austin also closed early. The wintery precipitation mix continued through the night and early the next morning, requiring the cancellation of several flights at both San Antonio International Airport and Austin Bergstrom International Airport. The layer of icing also forced the closing of numerous bridges and overpasses across the 25 counties involved. Late on the evening of the 12th, counties began to report widespread ice forming on roadways. Interstate 10 was closed between Kerrville and San Antonio from the evening of the 12th until the mid morning of the 13th. The city of San Antonio closed all interstates within its boundaries from shortly after midnight until mid morning on the 13th. Drivers were forced to travel on frontage roads in the mean time. By 10 am on the morning of the 13th, the freezing rain had ended over all but the extreme northeast section of South Central Texas, and by 4 pm that afternoon the last of the warnings and advisories were lifted. Storm damage generally consisted of accidents on slick roads and trees and tree limbs toppling over on power lines. Motorists were unable to travel safely over the glassy streets and roads, and vehicular accidents in San Antonio and Austin were counted in the hundreds. As the heavy weight of the ice collapsed both trees and tree limbs, power outages became widespread. The worst problems were in the Austin area where over 90,000 persons were without power during the height of the storm. San Antonio reported 20,000 without power during the worst of the event. San Marcos also reported 20,000 power outages, with nearly 8,000 outages across the area from New Braunfels and Seguin. Some of the power was not restored until 36 hours later. Although severe, this storm did not come close to the level of damage and destruction of the Winter Storm of February, 1996.