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Del Rio officials detail cold‑weather response after arctic blast; warming center operated through Jan. 28
Summary
City Manager Shawna Burkhart told council members that the Chihuahua Warming Center opened Jan. 24 and will remain open through Jan. 28; city staff and partner agencies coordinated transportation and utilities support and reported no service interruptions despite a pump motor failure that was mitigated by a backup pump.
City Manager Shawna D. Burkhart gave the City Council a detailed summary of the city’s response to an arctic weather event Jan. 24–28, saying the Chihuahua Warming Center opened Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and was scheduled to remain operational through Wednesday, Jan. 28, closing at noon.
Burkhart credited city departments and partner agencies — including Val Verde County, Laughlin Air Force Base, AEP and TxDOT — for coordinating emergency operations, transportation assistance for elderly residents and other support services. She said the Nutrition Program provided hot meals and distributed frozen meals in advance to ensure no lapse in services and that WIC clients were rescheduled so services continued.
Utility operations largely continued without interruption, Burkhart said. At the Tierra de Lago system staff identified a pump‑motor failure but the system continued operating on a redundant backup pump, and there were no interruptions to water distribution. AEP reported only isolated, short outages that were quickly restored. Burkhart said the city will issue a public notice summarizing the response and will present cold‑weather response protocols at the Feb. 10 council meeting.
Mayor Alvaro Arreola thanked first responders and partner agencies for their coordination in opening and operating the warming center. Council members also took the opportunity to emphasize communication: Councilwoman Carmen Gutierrez apologized to the community and said she wants greater transparency and periodic updates; Councilwoman Ernestina Martinez and Councilman Jesus Lopez Jr. said they had been advised to “stay away” and noted the warming‑center location was determined on short notice, which may have limited community awareness of its location.
No formal action was taken; City Manager Burkhart stated that a public information notice would be distributed by the Public Information Officer and that staff will return with a presentation on the city’s cold‑weather protocols at the Feb. 10 meeting.
