Texas Devastated by Winter Storm
Beginning Tuesday evening ice and snow started falling in the south, and over the next several days, brought much devastation. We all are aware of the millions of people in Texas without power. Latest reports as of 6:17 am Saturday morning, Feb 20th, are that power outages in Texas are down to 80,692.
Our Associate Director responsible for Texas, Brian Spicer, has been trying to call or physically visit areas in Texas, reaching out to conregations across South Central Texas regarding their needs and the current conditions in their area.
We have not been called to send any supplies so far. Yes, there is a need, but several other factors are preventing the assistance. Many told Brian that our sem-trailers full of supplies could not get through to their buildings yet. Many buildings also are without power, or have water damage due to the power outage and frozen pipes, so are not accessible. Also because of the roads area church members could not get to the building to work or help with the distribution, which means those needing the supplies could not get to the building either. Leaders will continue to monitor their situation and consider what they can do. As of Thursday morning the number of people in Texas alone without power had dropped from 2.9 Million on Wednesday morning to fewer than 600,000.
The same storm left ice and snow up through Tennessee to the East Coast. The Nashville area received ice and freezing rain, and up to 6” of snow in surrounding areas, as temperatures got down below the teens.
We are standing by ready to send supplies, waiting for the call saying trucks can get through, and the buildings are accessible. As soon as we get a call we will update you here.
We pray for the millions hit by this storm and the conditions they have to endure until help can get to them. Houston, Austin, San Antonio, and many other areas across the South are not accustomed to dealing with ice and snow, because it normally does not hapoen in these communities. Many areas reported it had not been this cold since the late 1800's. And Texas losing their power grid just brought extra damage. Thank you for your prayers for all needing help, and for all of us wanting yo help.