Thousands remain without power after storm
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Crews work near a downed tree at 38th Street and Speedway. Photo: Asher Price/Axios
One person is dead and thousands remain without power as city officials continue recovery efforts after Wednesday's intense storm.
Why it matters: Some residents could be without power for days as Austin Energy officials and first responders work to clear trees on power lines and downed utility poles.
- There are still some severe weather chances "very early morning" Friday (beginning after midnight), which could include hail, heavy winds and flooding, per National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Platt.
- There's no rain in the forecast Saturday, but Platt notes a 20% chance of afternoon showers Sunday.
Driving the news: A severe thunderstorm with golf ball-sized hail, flooding and wind gusts as high as 77 mph moved through the area Wednesday evening.
- More than 35,000 Austin Energy customers were without power as of 12pm Thursday. Check the latest number on the utility provider's website.
What they're saying: "The speed of this storm is a powerful reminder that all of us need to be prepared," city manager T.C. Broadnax said in a press conference Thursday.
Zoom in: At the height of the storm, between 6:45pm and 7pm, more than 72,000 Austin Energy customers lost power.
- The storm caused the third-highest number of outages in Austin Energy's history, behind the winter storms of 2021 and 2023, according to Stuart Reilly, the utility's interim general manager.
- "Because the damage we're seeing is so substantial, outage restoration activities are expected to last for multiple days," Reilly said.
Austin-Travis County EMS chief Robert Luckritz said emergency responders received nine water rescue calls, including calls about vehicles taking on water and pedestrians being swept away in floodwaters.
- "Most of those incidents came in the span of less than an hour, where we saw almost a 35% increase in call volume," Luckritz said.
- One person died in floodwaters in the 2200 block of West North Loop Drive just before 8pm. Officials did not provide further information about the cause of death or the victim's identity.
What's next: City officials reminded residents to avoid downed power lines, head to cooling centers around town if needed, and take note of property damage.
- Small downed branches should be placed in city compost bins and additional compost bags.
- Call 3-1-1 to request a pickup of larger branches, limbs and other flood debris.