Austin, TX
Heat dome moves into Texas with record highs expected
AUSTIN, Texas — A heat dome that has led to nearly 90 consecutive days of triple-digit temperatures in Phoenix moved into Texas Wednesday, with record highs expected to fall by the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
Meanwhile, energy demand in Texas hit an unofficial all-time high Tuesday, according to data from the state’s grid operator.
A major heat alert is in place for Texas, reflecting what the weather service called “rare and/or long-duration extreme heat with little to no overnight relief.” An extreme heat alert was issued for eastern New Mexico.
A heat dome is a slow moving, upper-level high pressure system of stable air and a deep layer of high temperatures, meteorologist Bryan Jackson said.
“It is usually sunny, the sun is beating down, it is hot and the air is contained there,” Jackson said. “There are dozen or so sites that are setting daily records … mostly over Texas.”
Record high temperatures were expected in cities such as Corpus Christi, San Antonio and Amarillo. In Phoenix, monsoon rains have provided brief respites since Sunday, although daytime highs continue to top 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius).
The dome was expected to move into western Oklahoma and eastern New Mexico beginning Saturday, then into the mid-Mississippi Valley, where it was forecast to weaken slightly, Jackson said.
About 14.7 million people are under an excessive heat warning, with heat indexes expected at 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius) and above. Another 10 million people were under a heat advisory.
There were 38 heat-related deaths in Texas from January through July, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services, and hundreds have already sought emergency care, according to MedStar ambulance in Fort Worth, Texas. The service responded to 286 heat-related calls during the first 20 days of August, about 14 per day, compared to about 11 per day in August 2023, according to public information officer Desiree Partain.
Austin-Travis County EMS Capt. Christa Stedman said calls about heat-related illness in the area around the Texas state Capitol since April 1 are up by about one per day compared with a year ago, though July was somewhat milder this year.
“The vast majority of what we see is heat exhaustion, which is good because we catch it before it’s heat stroke, but it’s bad because people are not listening to the red flags,” such as heat cramps in the arms, legs or stomach warning that the body is becoming too hot, Stedman said.
Despite the record heat in Texas, residents haven’t been asked to cut back on their energy use like in years prior. This contrasts with the 11 conservation notices issued last year. One reason is that the agency, which manages Texas’ independent energy grid and deregulated providers, has improved the grid’s capabilities with the addition of more than 15 gigawatts of power supply since last summer.
Although the agency has gotten better at controlling the demands of the grid, their criteria for when to notify residents to conserve energy has also changed, Doug Lewin, an energy consultant and president of Stoic Energy said.
Lewin suspects it’s because they’re ineffective and unpopular.
“I don’t think they’re seeing all that much reduction when they give notices,” Lewin said of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. In fact public uproar against the conservation warnings has led to the agency sending fewer of them, he continued.
“There are many factors that ERCOT operations take into consideration when determining the need to issue conservation, case by case depending on conditions at the time,” communications manager Trudi Webster said on the matter.
“It’s been a hot summer, but this one does stand out in terms of extremes,” said Jackson, the meteorologist.
Earlier this month, about 100 people were sickened and 10 were hospitalized due to extreme heat at a Colorado air show and at least two people have died due to the heat in California’s Death Valley National Park.
Globally, a string of 13 straight months with a new average heat record came to an end this past July as the natural El Nino climate pattern ebbed, the European climate agency Copernicus announced Thursday.
Austin, TX
Texas Attorney General executes search warrants in Bexar, Frio, Atascosa counties as part of election probe
AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday executed multiple search warrants in Frio, Atascosa, and Bexar counties as part of an ongoing investigation into election integrity.
The AG’s Election Integrity Unit in 2022 received a referral from the 81st Judicial District Attorney Audrey Louis regarding allegations of election fraud and vote harvesting that occurred during the 2022 elections.
A two-year investigation provided sufficient evidence to obtain the search warrants in furtherance of the ongoing investigation, a news release said.
“Secure elections are the cornerstone of our republic,” Texas Attorney General Paxton said. “We were glad to assist when the District Attorney referred this case to my office for investigation. We are completely committed to protecting the security of the ballot box and the integrity of every legal vote. This means ensuring accountability for anyone committing election crimes.”
Copyright 2024 by KSAT – All rights reserved.
It’s been an emotional ride for Dallas Cowboys fans throughout the past few weeks, and notably tense with the NFL regular season approaching.
Will CeeDee Lamb sign a contract extension and finally report to the team after staying away from offseason workouts and extending is holdout through camp?
Will Dak Prescott get the payday he deserves?
MORE: CeeDee Lamb contract talks with Cowboys have one major holdup
It gets exhausting to constantly think about those dilemmas, but it’s more palatable when one of the team’s celebrity superfans can put a smile on your face.
Enter country music superstar Kacey Musgraves.
Musgraves, a Grammy Award winner and Sulphur Springs, Texas, native, took to social media to show off some new gear supporting America’s Teams and provide a bit of a break from the tense headlines.
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How ’bout them Cowboys?
Sometimes we just need to accept the small victories.
MORE: Jerry Jones remains optimistic amidst ongoing CeeDee Lamb contract talks
Sure, it would be great to have CeeDee Lamb back with the team and Dak Prescott under contract for the future, but Kacey Musgrave is a small win we can all get behind.
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View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
If you can’t get enough of Miss Musgraves, she released her sixth studio album Deeper Well earlier this year.
— Enjoy free coverage of the Cowboys from Dallas Cowboys on SI —
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Burn ban issued for Travis County
The Travis County Commissioners Court issued a burn ban for parts of Travis County as Central Texas reaches triple-digit temperatures.
TEXAS – The Travis County Commissioners Court issued a burn ban for parts of Travis County as Central Texas reaches triple-digit temperatures.
The heat has also increased the threat of wildfires across the region.
“The burn ban is going to go into effect immediately and right now we have it scheduled to last for 14 days,” says Travis County spokesperson Hector Nieto.
Travis County’s ban on outdoor burning prohibits unincorporated areas from burning trash and other articles as temperatures reach triple digits in Central Texas.
Burn ban issued for Travis County
First responders warn about excessive heat
Monday, August 19, was the hottest day of the year, so far, in Central Texas. First responders in Travis County are warning residents about the dangerous conditions, signs of heat-related illnesses and how to avoid them.
“Obviously, the temperatures are hot, but the other problem is there is a lack of humidity in the air. When you combine these two, it can be risky for fires, and so what we are trying to do with this burn ban is prevent any wildfires throughout the area,” says Nieto.
Travis County is 1 out of nearly 115 counties under a burn ban in the state, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.
“Burn bans are a great tool that our local officials can use to indicate that there is a risk in their area. Any little spark can create a wildfire. We encourage everyone to be very cautious with their activities. Anything they are doing outside that can potentially cause a spark even parking their vehicle in tall dry grass, welding their fence using some of that heavy mechanized equipment around their property,” says Texas A&M Forest Service Public Information Officer, Erin O’Connor.
Signs and symptoms of heat stroke, exhaustion
Summer is here, but central Texas has been feeling the heat for a while now. FOX 7’s Rebecca Thomas speaks with ER Dr. Ryan McCorkle with St. David’s Medical Center for more.
This week, Governor Abbott announced he has deployed additional state firefighting resources as wildfire threats continue to increase across Texas and wildfire prepardness reaches level three.
“We put preparedness levels in place as indicators of the fire environment and conditions that we are facing. So with the dry conditions, the continued triple digit temperatures and just the increase in activity as well as our resource commitment, we felt like we needed to increase that level,” says O’Connor.
This month, there were two wildfires in Central Texas. The Pony Haymaker in Caldwell County, spanning 18 acres, and the Bastrop Dame fire, spanning 8. 5 acres. Both are 100 percent contained.
“We are starting to see some activity in the Central Texas area. That area of risk where it is dry and hot is expanding into Central Texas. In the past week, more than 60 wildfires have burned more than 10,000 acres across Texas,” said O’Connor.
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