| | | | For immediate release:
Feb. 22, 2021
Contact: Austin-Travis County Emergency Operations Center
City of Austin Resumes Normal Operations, Austin Water Partially Lifts Water Boil Notice | | | The City of Austin will resume normal operations today.
Austin Resource Recovery (ARR)
Austin Resource Recovery will resume curbside collections today.
Customers are asked to set out carts, bulk and large brush by 6:30 a.m. on their scheduled collection day. Extra bags of trash from last week's missed collection will be collected along with extra recycling and composting at no additional charge.
Scheduled large brush and bulk item collections that were missed due to the severe weather will begin today and continue throughout the week.
Download the Austin Recycles mobile app or visit austintexas.gov/myschedule
Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD)
The Austin Parks and Recreation Department continues to assess winter storm damage to its facilities. All facilities will remain closed until thorough site inspections are complete; however, parks and trails remain open. For the latest information, please visit austintexas.gov/parkclosures.
Austin Water (AW)
Overnight water storage figures have exceeded 118 million gallons in reserves, increasing system-wide water pressure and bringing Austin's water system into healthy territory.
AW has partially lifted the boil water notice for the Central Austin area. The water quality meets all regulatory standards and is safe for drinking, cooking, and making ice. Customers can view the interactive map to find out if their address is affected by the latest lifted boil water notice. All other customers remain under a boil water notice and should continue to boil their water for two minutes before consuming.
Under a Boil Water Notice, mandatory water restrictions remain in place. Customers may not: - Use water for irrigation or testing of irrigation equipment
- Wash vehicles, including at commercial car wash facilities
- Wash pavement or other surfaces
- Add water to a pool or spa
- Conduct foundation watering, or
- Operate an ornamental fountain or pond, other than aeration necessary to support aquatic life.
Violations of these restrictions should be reported to Austin 3-1-1.
The boil water notice will remain in place for certain zones until we can do sufficient sampling to establish that the water is safe to drink. Test results generally require 24 hours.
If customers have questions concerning this matter, they may visit www.austintexas.gov/page/boil-water-notice-and-faqs or contact 3-1-1.
Water Distribution
Community access to free water resources continues through 16 water distribution sites coordinated by the Austin-Travis County Emergency Operations Center. These water distribution sites will operate from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Del Valle High School location will operate starting at 10 a.m.) while supplies last. - Nelson Field (7105 Berkman Dr, Austin, TX 78752)
- Onion Creek Soccer Complex (5600 E. William Cannon Dr, Austin, TX 78744)
- Roy G. Guerrero Park (400 Grove Blvd, Austin, TX 78741)
- ACC Highland Mall Parking Lot (E. Highland Mall Blvd, Austin, TX 78752)
- ACC Pinnacle Campus (7748 Highway 290 West, Austin, TX 78736)
- Garrison Park (6001 Menchaca Rd, Austin, TX 78745)
- Lakeline Station (13625 Lyndhurst Blvd, Austin, TX 78717)
- Walnut Creek Park (12138 N. Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78753)
- Zilker Park (2301 Barton Springs Rd, Austin, TX 78746)
- Anderson High School (8403 Mesa Dr, Austin, TX 78759)
- Lago Vista/Jonestown (7905 Bronco Lane, Leander, TX 78645)
- Lakeway/Bee Cave (1941 Lohmans Crossing Rd, Lakeway TX 78734)
- 9300 FM2244, Austin, TX 78733
- Del Valle High School (5201 Ross Rd, Del Valle, TX 78617)
- Manor ISD Athletic Complex (14832 FM973, Manor, TX 78653)
- Mobile POD - San Leanna
Residents are reminded to recycle all single-use plastic bottles and jugs instead of throwing them in the trash.
The City will continue to update information water distribution totals on the Cold Weather and Information Resource page and on the City's social media pages.
Food Distribution
Like many communities, Austin is still navigating through the COVID-19 pandemic. Last week's severe weather storm compounded the needs of those in our community who were already facing food insecurity.
Austin/Travis County Emergency Management secured approximately 25,000 ready to heat meals from the Red Cross and, in partnership with local organizations, will be implementing a variety of strategies including establishing a mass food distribution site and continuing to offer delivery to home-bound individuals. These efforts strive to fill the gaps of efforts already underway by existing food access providers. Forthcoming information about mass food distribution will be available on the Cold Weather and Information Resource page and on the City's social media pages.
Austin relies on a network of organizations to provide food to our community, including grocery stores and non-profit groups. With improving weather conditions, the City of Austin and Travis County are working diligently to ensure that our critical partners in providing food can restart operations today, including the Central Texas Food Bank, Meals on Wheels, local Independent School Districts, and area grocers.
Thanks to countless organizations like Austin Disaster Relief Network (ADRN), Community Resiliency Trust, Cooks Nook, Keep Austin Fed, Good Works Austin, Austin Voices and so many local restaurants, thousands of Austinites have received meals through mass food distribution efforts and home delivery programs.
ADRN is coordinating contactless curbside food and water drop off for vulnerable populations through their network of volunteers. Home-bound Austinites experiencing food insecurity can request a drop-off by calling (512) 806-0800.
Austin Energy (AE)
Austin Energy continues to work as quickly and safely as possible to restore power. A majority of customers whose power was affected by the winter conditions last week have electricity again, and crews continue to work on the remaining outages.
AE provides stable, affordable electric rates to all its customers, their base rates are fixed, and any changes must be authorized by Austin City Council after a thorough rate review process. Residential customers are billed for their actual energy usage, measured in kilowatt hours (kWh), recorded from their electric meter. Anyone without power during this time had no electric use recorded from meters during outage events.
"Restoring power and water to our community has been a daunting task in the wake of last week's devastating storm," said Austin City Manager Spencer Cronk. "I am incredibly proud of our city employees who are working tirelessly around the clock in quite challenging conditions to make sure services are restored. I am also grateful to live in a community with residents who are always so willing and ready to step up and help one another through difficult times."
Recovery Assistance
The extended Winter Weather Event order and disaster declaration for Austin remain in effect to minimize energy demand and ensure the community can continue to tap into every resource available to persevere through this crisis.
Recovery Assistance
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has opened assistance for those who were impacted by the winter severe weather in Travis County.
Residents can apply for assistance in the following ways: - Uninsured: Apply online at http://DisasterAssistance.gov.
- Insured: File a claim with their insurance company and then apply to FEMA. FEMA cannot duplicate benefits if you received insurance from your provider first.
Housing and Planning Department (HPD)
The Housing and Planning Department's home repair program can assist eligible homeowners who need repairs following the recent storms. The program provides resources to address the needs of low- to moderate-income homeowners. HPD is working closely with the Development Services Department and leveraging other City resources to provide an efficient response as possible for households seeking repairs.
Information about the City's home repair programs and assistance to qualifying households will be available on the home repair program webpage later today.
Development Services Department (DSD)
Beginning Monday, February 22, residents who need to make emergency repairs following the winter storm can contact the DSD Emergency Repairs Team with any emergency repair permitting questions at (512) 974-1500.
Some projects may not require permits. Additionally, work can begin right away on projects that present safety hazards the home or business. Those residents should acquire retroactive permits as soon as possible after work begins to ensure their emergency repairs meet code requirements.
Austin Public Health (APH)
Austin Public Health has begun rescheduling vaccine appointments for the estimated 3,300 patients whose appointments were canceled starting on Feb. 13. If you had an appointment, please check your phone and email frequently for updates. APH has approximately 7,000 first doses and 7,500 second doses remaining from the Feb. 7 state allocation before the winter storm.
All APH-affiliated testing operations will resume their normal schedules on Monday, Feb. 22.
For additional COVID-19 information and updates, visit www.AustinTexas.gov/COVID19.
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