LCRA officials say winter storm response kept power flowing; employees praised

Chair Cooper convened the board of the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) on Jan. 28, 2026, and heard a detailed operations report on the authority's response to a recent winter storm.

Phil (staff member) told directors that LCRA had prepared in advance, staging employees at critical facilities and keeping crews near remote transmission areas 24 hours a day. "We've been through a significant winter storm," he said, adding that teams "resolved complex issues very quickly" and prioritized safety while keeping power flowing. He singled out generation availability, including the Timmerman power plant, and said all in-service generating units and dams were available.

Phil reported that transmission crews addressed 18 transmission outages in LCRA's service area and that total customer outage duration across the event was "just over 3 hours." He also said telecommunications experienced only minor issues and were protected by backups as designed. Staff spread more than one ton of ice melt at critical pathways, ensured more than 40,000 gallons of fuel were available for responders and coordinated four-wheel-drive vehicles to support field teams.

The report emphasized cross-unit coordination: "Business units and support functions coordinated closely before and throughout the event to make sure our operation groups had all the support they needed," Phil said. He also warned board members about false information and phishing attempts targeting customers during the storm.

Chair Cooper and other directors thanked staff for the response and recognized employees for their work during the event. The board did not take formal action on the report; the presentation served as an operational update.