Last week’s storm not a state of emergency

ELLIS COUNTY – Last week’s winter storm did not elicit a local state of disaster declaration at the county level from Ellis County Judge Todd Little.

Little said before the storm he had been asked if he planned to declare a state of disaster.

A disaster would have been part of a winter storm unofficially named Winter Storm Landon by The Weather Channel that swept the area with ice and snow.

The storm hit Wednesday night. It had been anticipated to cause power outages, downed electrical lines and dangerous road conditions.

Many areas did see icy roads and snow. Schools and businesses closed on Thursday and some on Friday too.

However, Monday morning, Little said he had not called a disaster declaration or emergency and he was meeting with the emergency management staff, of which he is the lead, to “assess damage” later that day.

Little also mentioned Governor Abbott had included Ellis County in his disaster declaration. “It was declared before the storm hit so residents could be eligible for FEMA reimbursement in the event it was necessary for mutual aide,” Little said.

Little added in Ellis County there were a little over 900 without power, but only for a few hours the entire weekend.

He said there was no severe damage across county either from the storm that was also called the “Groundhog Snowstorm” because of its timing on Groundhog Day.

And yes, the groundhog did see his shadow, which is said to mean the country can expect below-average temperatures for the next six weeks.

Even though over the past 10 years, the groundhog has only been correct 40-percent of the time.

As for the state’s main power grid, it seemed to have held up.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), manager of the grid, had said before the storm that high energy demand could be expected as the cold front blew through. 

Even so, they assured the company was certain it would be able to meet the demands.

One Ellis County resident said, “They made a huge deal out of the storm so when they just messed up a little they could still say they did a good job.”