2-17-21 NOON
Medina EC’s service area, and the rest of Texas, continues to be mandated by ERCOT to have forced outages and cut power to members. The extreme freezing weather that has a grip on Texas is affecting all of us. Please know that we understand your frustration and we share in it as this is entirely outside our control. Medina EC is committed to serving you, and that is being made impossible until additional generation units in the state are up and running.
ERCOT stated that they released some capacity back to utilities, but that number is minimal when spread across the state. ERCOT planned to bring on even more power by connecting the Midwest grid, but that plan failed when the Midwest went into a power emergency of their own.
We are hopeful the warmer temperatures today will reduce some of the demand on the grid while more generators come back on and generation increases.
Another winter blast is expected to come through Texas, dropping temperatures and bringing more freezing rain. We expect these mandated outages to continue through Thursday and possibly Friday. We understand this is not the answer you want to hear, but it is the reality of the situation.
We share these updates in hopes that you can understand that future weather conditions are not favorable, and these forced outages can change quickly and are regulated by ERCOT.
We will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as able. Please know that our staff is working nonstop and our top priority is our members. We are sorry you are experiencing this hardship. We ask that you continue to bear with us through this difficult time.
OUTAGE REPORTING
Outages can be reported by calling 1-866-632-3532 or using the SmartHub app or at MedinaEC.org. If you report an outage and learn you are part of a forced outage, please wait until you have been without power for 8 hours to re-report. We know that this is a frustrating situation but waiting to call back will free up phone lines for other members.
Please continue to:
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Get official information, continue to check our website. To see the latest outage numbers and track progress, visit our outage map.
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Report your outages on SmartHub (on our website or through the app) if you can. This is your best option.
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To speak to a customer service agent, call 1-866-632-3532 or use the chat function on our website, which is available from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.
*Please note* At any given time, we have more than 10,000 members without power and our system is overwhelmed with calls, online traffic to our website and SmartHub app. You may experience delays, dropped calls or errors in SmartHub.
How You Can Help
We need your help. If you are without power, please turn off any appliances and heating systems that were on when your outage began. When we flip the switch to bring you back online, we need the load to be as low as possible. If heaters are in the on position when the power comes back up, we run the risk of overload which can lead to additional outage times.
Why Are Some People Not Losing Power
Certain feeders cannot be turned off because they serve critical loads like hospitals, natural gas plants, etc. Others are left on because they’re on an emergency list that will automatically drop if the grid gets into even more critical trouble than we are seeing right now. If that happens, those loads will immediately drop to protect grid integrity.
