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Texas outages tend to come from summer heat and storms, winter freezes, and Gulf hurricanes. Use this checklist before each season. Sign up for your utility's outage alerts, and follow ERCOT's conservation notices at ercot.com.
Before any outage
- Know your utility and how to report outages (save the number and text alerts)
- A week of prescription medications; a cooler plan for insulin
- If someone depends on powered medical equipment, have backup power for it and tell your utility (many keep a critical-care customer list)
- Charged power bank or power station for phones and internet
- Flashlights or LED lanterns and spare batteries (no candles if you can avoid them)
- Battery or crank weather radio
- One gallon of water per person per day for several days
- Non-perishable food and a manual can opener
- Cash, since card readers fail in outages
- Fuel car tanks before a storm
- Working smoke and CO alarms
Summer heat
- Battery fans and cooling towels
- Pre-cool the house before storms or peak alerts
- Know your nearest cooling center
- Check on elderly neighbors
Winter freeze
- Insulate exposed pipes; know where your main water shut-off is
- Drip faucets on exterior walls during hard freezes
- Warm layers, sleeping bags and blankets
- Never heat with a gas oven, grill or generator indoors
Hurricane season (June 1 to November 30)
- Know your evacuation zone
- Waterproof bag for documents
- Fill bathtubs for flushing water
- Freeze water jugs to keep the fridge cold longer
After the power comes back
Food in a closed fridge stays safe about 4 hours; a full freezer about 48 hours (FoodSafety.gov). When in doubt, throw it out. Recharge all batteries right away.
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