BEAUMONT, Texas — Early Monday, ERCOT, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the agency that oversees the state's electric grid, declared the state of Texas at the highest energy emergency level because of lower power supply and high demand due to extreme low temperatures during the winter storm.
Rotating power outages started across the state Monday morning. Larger cities like Austin and Houston, where power usage was highest, were hit hard.
So far, Southeast Texas has avoided being part of those rolling blackouts. But, that could change as the area prepares for lows that threaten the coldest air the area has ever seen.
"We don't necessarily anticipate at this moment for impacts in the Golden Triangle area, but certainly we're continuing to monitor the conditions with our grid reliability coordinator," Alison Payne with Entergy Texas told 12News.
Entergy sent a tweet Tuesday afternoon asking for voluntary reductions in electricity to avoid a rolling blackout request from their reliability coordinator Midcontinent ISO, or MISO.
The cold arctic blast invading Southeast Texas does have a major impact on the power grids. It's something that the Jasper Newton Electric Co-op says they are also watching closely.
"There is a concern that (blackouts) could happen, but we have not received a request yet from MISO," Joey Davis with the Jasper Newton Electric Co-op told 12News. "However that can change. We're asking our members to be mindful and conserve energy and be prepared in case there is an event that we have to implement rolling blackouts."
Both Entergy and JNEC tell 12News that tonight's lows in the teens and even single digits for some areas, potentially record-setting cold air, could put a strain on the grids and force rolling blackouts. The main reason is because many people use extra space heaters and other items that takes up more energy than normal.
But there are things you can do to help keep that strain on the power grids down.
Entergy recommends keeping your thermostat to around 68°.
ERCOT says it helps to avoid using large appliances like dish washers, washers and dryers and to unplug any large, non-essential appliances you may not be using.
Closing your shades and blinds to keep the heat in and cold out is another way to conserve energy.