MCLENNAN COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — We've been getting calls to the 25 Newsroom from lots of our neighbors wondering how cold it could get inside their home if the power goes out.
It all depends on how cold it is outside, and what your insulation looks like — so here's what you can do if the lights go out.
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"Power outages in cold weather differ significantly than power outages in warm weather. They're both dangerous, but cold weather power outages more inherently so because you can't stay in your home if it's 0 degrees outside and you lose power, you're going to have a problem," McLennan County Emergency Management Coordinator Ryan Dirker said.
"It could turn out to be nothing or it could be something. It could get bad, really bad," Clare Paul with McLennan County Public Health said.
I want you to be prepared if your power does go out, so first let's go over a few things you need to have:
- Batteries
- Portable chargers — make sure they're charged
- Flashlights
- Blankets
- Nonperishable foods like crackers, bread, maybe some peanut butter and jelly
And some things you need to get done:
- Wrap your pipes inside your home and open your cabinets to let the warm air in
- Fill up your gas tank
- Have a go bag ready with water, any medications, and supplies for 3 days
For your safety, Clare Paul with McLennan County Public Health reminds you to not bring your generators inside and to be safe if you have natural gas.
"Please, please, please do not use your stoves or ovens to heat your home. If, for some reason, you know, you lose electrical power, you know, that'll help you get carbon monoxide poisoning," Paul said.
Some of our 25 News team has some winter weather hacks to help you stay warm if your power goes out this weekend:
"Cover your windows, that is like number one, to protect your home, and keep it warm," 25 News' Chantale Belefanti said.
"Shrink wrap the windows, this kit is like $23 from Home Depot, you put plastic over the windows, it sticks and then you wave a blow dryer at it to make it stick," Senior Neighborhood Reporter Charles Molineaux said.
"Layers, when you get up in the morning, and you're wearing pajama pants, put your regular pants over them, if you're wearing a long sleeve shirt, wear a thermal underneath," Art Devitalis said.
"If you have hand warmers, I just bought some along with the feet warmers, those are absolutely great," Belefanti added
If your power does go out, the city of Waco is opening the Multi Purpose Center as a warming center. It opens Friday night at 8 p.m. and will stay open until 11 a.m. on Tuesday.
You can find the closest warming center to you here.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
