On a normal day, Ullrich Water Treatment Plant produces roughly half of Austin s drinkable water and is crucial to keeping the city s water system functioning.
State regulations require the plant to either have access to a backup power source or a substantial amount of water reserves in case the plant sees an unexpected shutdown. Ullrich has both.
So when a tree limb fell on an electric line leading to a substation that powered Austin s largest water treatment plant on Feb. 17, backups should have snapped into place to keep power running and water production churning.
But there was a problem: Nobody on site knew how to operate a 52-year-old gear switch that would have restored power to the plant.
USA TODAY
Days after parts of the south-central U.S. suffered freezing temperatures and ice that knocked out power to millions and resulted in dozens of deaths, many of the same areas are at risk of flash flooding from heavy rainfall expected over the weekend.
Excessive rainfall is expected along an approximately 1,000-mile-long zone from Texas to Maryland over the next three days, according to AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowsk. Soil potentially still wet from the melting snow and ice from last week s winter storm could accelerate water runoff, Sosnowski said.
Some areas could see more than 5 inches of rain, the National Weather Service said on Twitter Friday.
Motorcyclist killed in crash on William Cannon Drive identified
By FOX 7 Austin Digital Team
Published
AUSTIN, Texas - The Austin Police Department has identified the man killed in a motorcycle crash on February 9 at around 10:30 p.m.
Police say 22-year-old Jose Luis Hernandez was riding a red, 2009 Kawasaki motorcycle westbound in the 4400 block of East Wiliam Cannon Drive when he hit a utility pole.
Hernandez was taken by Austin-Travis County EMS to St. David s South Austin Medical Center where he died from his injuries at 11:37 p.m.
Police say they are still investigating the crash. Anyone with information regarding this case should call APD’s Vehicular Homicide Unit Detectives at (512) 974-6873. You can also submit tips by downloading APD’s mobile app, Austin PD, for free on iPhone and Android.
Family of Cristian Pineda – the 11-year-old boy who died in a frozen Texas trailer sues power companies for $100M as Lone Star State ramps up water distribution but rural hospitals struggle with shortages
The family of Cristian Pavon Pineda, the 11-year-old Texas child who died during freezing weather, are to sue
Boy was found dead in his bed in family’s mobile home in Conroe, Texas as they had no electricity or heat
The devastated family plan to sue ERCOT and power company Entergy for gross negligence for $100 million
At its worst at least 14 million Texas were without clean drinking water and 4.5 million were without power
How Do You Run a Hospital With No Running Water? medscape.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from medscape.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.