Friday, February 4, 2022: 6:15 a.m.
Friday operational updates for Houston, Katy and The Woodlands
As of this morning, Texas Children’s leadership and our Organizational Resilience team have met to assess the current forecast and road conditions, and in many cases have driven into the Texas Medical Center to experience this morning’s commute.
At this time, temperatures are below freezing; however, the moderate precipitation from yesterday evening has only resulted in some light ice on the roadways. That being said, please plan for extra travel time if commuting to work this morning and proceed with attention and caution. Only travel on routes you feel are safe and be particularly aware of icy areas and impacted overpasses. To see up-to-date listings of known road closures or detours, please visit Houston Transtar or Drive Texas.
As communicated yesterday, our clinical staff will conduct one-to-one hand offs this morning to ensure coverage in our clinical areas. At this time, the forecast is expected to improve over the next few hours and to be above freezing later this morning. We will continue to monitor local conditions and provide updates as necessary.
For all other operational areas and local practices, please stay in touch with your leadership to determine any other changes to your operational schedule.
To sign up for emergency text message alerts, follow these instructions.
Thank you for your attention. Stay safe.
Lance Lightfoot
Administrator on Call
Dan DiPrisco
EVP on Call
Thursday, February 3, 2022: 8:15 p.m.
Thursday evening operational updates for winter storm
As we continue to monitor the ongoing winter weather, our leadership and Organizational Resilience team is meeting regularly to review the latest forecast, along with any potential impacts on local conditions. Although the winter storm is moving through the area at a slightly faster pace than what was forecasted, please do not let your guard down as we head in to the evening and morning hours, when freezing temperatures are expected for much of our operational areas.
For resources to monitor travel and road conditions, visit Houston Transtar and Drive Texas. For localized updates, see below:
- Austin: Precipitation is tapering off, but freezing temperatures will continue overnight and into tomorrow morning, causing hazardous road conditions. Friday afternoon’s temperatures will rise above freezing and then dip below freezing again overnight, causing the potential for icy conditions Saturday morning. Austin team members are asked to consult with their leadership on details for their location and practice area.
- College Station: Wintry precipitation will continue to taper off over the next several hours, but freezing temperatures will continue overnight and into tomorrow morning. Please stay in touch with your leadership about local operations.
- Houston/Katy/Woodlands: For Katy and The Woodlands, heavy precipitation is currently coming to an end, and freezing temperatures are expected overnight. For the rest of the Houston area, precipitation is expected to taper off later this evening, at which time temperatures will also fall to just below freezing. For those commuting to and from work Friday morning, please plan for extra travel time to allow for detours around icy areas or impacted overpasses. As previously communicated, clinical staff will conduct one-to-one hand offs during Friday morning’s shift change. Team members at our community practices are asked to continue consulting with their leadership about any impacts to local operations.
- Tyler/Longview: Wintry precipitation will continue to taper off over the next several hours, but freezing temperatures will continue overnight and into tomorrow morning. Services for Health Plan members will continue. There are multiple contingency plans in place if needed and we are reaching out to impacted members and providers as appropriate. Please stay in touch with leadership about local operations.
We will continue to monitor the latest forecast and travel conditions and provide an update early tomorrow morning. To sign up for emergency text message alerts, follow these instructions.
Thank you for your attention.
Lance Lightfoot
Administrator on Call
Dan DiPrisco
EVP on Call
Thursday, February 3, 2022: 11:20 a.m.
Thursday operational updates for winter storm
Texas Children’s leadership and our Organizational Resilience team continue to monitor the ongoing winter weather moving across Texas, and are meeting regularly to review the latest forecast, along with any potential impacts on schools, roads, utilities and other hospitals in the Texas Medical Center. As of this morning, the forecast has not changed significantly from yesterday, and for most of our operational areas we are only expecting minor disruptions. For localized updates, please see below.
- Austin: Freezing temperatures and precipitation have moved into the area causing hazardous travel conditions. This is expected to continue throughout the day and into tomorrow morning. Friday afternoon’s temperatures will rise above freezing and then dip below freezing again overnight, causing the potential for icy conditions Saturday morning. Austin team members are asked to consult with their leadership on details for their location and practice area.
- College Station: Wintry precipitation is moving into the area this morning. We are monitoring this closely to determine operational decisions. Please stay in touch with your leadership about local operations.
- Houston/Katy/Woodlands/Beaumont: Freezing temperatures and precipitation are approaching the area from the northwest and are expected to reach our Katy and The Woodlands campuses this evening around 5-6 p.m. For those working and/or living in those areas, please plan for extra travel time and consider arriving early for your shift to avoid inclement weather.
At this time, the bulk of freezing precipitation is expected to arrive within Houston during the evening hours, which may result in some wintry conditions into Friday morning. For those commuting on Friday morning, please plan for extra travel time to allow for detours around icy areas or impacted overpasses. As this will occur during our morning shift change, clinical staff will conduct one-to-one hand offs. During Friday afternoon, temperatures are expected to rise above freezing before dipping back below freezing overnight. Minor travel issues are possible for Saturday morning, though precipitation is expected to be minimal. At this time, the Houston area expects limited precipitation during a limited window this evening. As a result, we do not expect to activate our ride-out operations, despite any potential school closures. Please prepare your back-up child care plans in the case of school closures. We will continue to monitor local conditions and will provide updates as necessary. Team members at our community practices are asked to continue consulting with their leadership about any impacts to local operations.
- Tyler/Longview: Wintry precipitation is moving into the area this morning and road conditions will continue to worsen. Services for Health Plan members will continue. There are multiple contingency plans in place if needed and we are reaching out to impacted members and providers as appropriate. Please stay in touch with leadership about local operations.
Safety is our highest priority, so please follow the local weather for traffic and safety alerts before traveling. Use caution when navigating roadways and pay close attention to bridges and overpasses, as water can freeze quickly with a sudden drop in temperature.
To sign up for emergency text message alerts, follow these instructions.
Thank you for your attention.
Lance Lightfoot
Administrator on Call
Dan DiPrisco
EVP on Call
Wednesday, February 2, 2022: 8:30 p.m.
Operational updates for winter storm
Texas Children’s leadership and Organizational Resilience are continuing to closely monitor weather conditions across our operational areas and are meeting frequently to evaluate any expected impacts on our care delivery. Since this morning’s message, (below on this page) the forecast has not changed significantly, as we still expect freezing temperatures and frozen precipitation to move across much of Texas throughout Thursday and Friday. To see updates for specific areas, please see below.
- Austin: With weather conditions resulting in local impacts and school closures, we anticipate our community operations to be impacted. Please consult with your leader on the details for your location and practice area.
- College Station: As we continue to monitor road conditions, please stay in touch with leadership about local operations.
- Houston/Katy/Woodlands/Beaumont: At this time, conditions are not expected to be inclement until Friday morning, when some light icing on the roadways is expected. As such, for Friday morning, please plan for extra travel time to allow for detours around icy areas or impacted overpasses. As this will occur during our morning shift change, clinical staff will conduct one-to-one hand offs. At this time, we do not expect to activate ride-out operations and are not anticipating impacts to care delivery for our patients and members. We will continue to closely monitor for any changes in the forecast.
- Tyler/Longview: Services for Health Plan members will proceed under normal operations at this time. There are multiple contingency plans in place if needed and we are reaching out to impacted members as appropriate.
As stated earlier, safety is our highest priority, so please follow the local news and weather for traffic and safety alerts before traveling. Use caution when navigating roadways and pay close attention to bridges and overpasses, as water can freeze quickly with a sudden drop in temperature.
To sign up for emergency text message alerts, follow these instructions.
Thank you for your attention.
Lance Lightfoot
Administrator on Call
Dan DiPrisco
EVP on Call
Wednesday, February 2, 2022: 10:40 a.m.
Potential wintry precipitation starting Thursday
Texas Children’s leadership and the Department of Organizational Resilience are closely monitoring a winter storm front with freezing temperatures and potential frozen precipitation across the region.
- Austin: Freezing temperatures and possible wintry precipitation will move into the area Thursday around 2-3 a.m. bringing a risk of icy conditions all day Thursday and into Friday morning. Please continue to monitor local conditions and stay in touch with your leadership for updated information on business operations.
- College Station: Freezing temperatures and possible wintry precipitation will move into the area Thursday morning bringing a risk of icy conditions all day Thursday and into Friday morning.
- Houston: Freezing temperatures and possible wintry precipitation are expected to arrive across the region starting Thursday evening, which could create icy conditions for the Friday morning commute mainly west and northwest of downtown. Temperatures are expected to rise above freezing Friday afternoon. There will be another potential light freeze Saturday morning.
- Tyler/Longview: Freezing temperatures and wintry precipitation are expected starting early Thursday morning and will persist throughout the day and into Friday. Icy conditions are expected with the possibility of snow flurries with accumulation of around an inch.
Safety is our highest priority, so please follow the local news and weather for traffic and safety alerts when traveling. Use caution when navigating roadways and pay close attention to bridges and overpasses, as water can freeze very quickly with a sudden drop in temperatures. Plan for additional travel time to make detours or adjust your route if necessary.
TCUC/TCP employees should consult their respective leadership over the next 24-48 hours for updated information on business operations.
Please note the important reminders below for personal/home preparedness for this cold weather event:
- Protect all exposed pipes, shut off and drain sprinkler systems. Open cabinet doors and closet doors to get as much heat against outside facing wall pipes as possible. In some cases, the best course of action may be to shut off water to a structure and drain pipes overnight when water usage is low to avoid pipes freezing and bursting.
- Heavily cover and protect any tropical vegetation, citrus or vulnerable plants.
- Pets should have proper shelter, food and water. Normal water supplies could freeze over, including stock ponds and lakes.
To sign up for emergency text message alerts, follow these instructions.
Thank you for your attention.
Lance Lightfoot
Administrator on Call
Dan DiPrisco
EVP on Call
Monday, January 31, 2022: 12 p.m.
Potential localized flash flooding – prepare for afternoon commute
Texas Children’s leadership and the Department of Organizational Resilience are closely monitoring a strong upper level storm system with potential for flash flooding across Houston, Austin and College Station.
The heaviest rain is expected between 3-9 p.m. tonight, which may impact both the afternoon commute and shift changes for our employees. Flash flooding, some river flooding and heavy downpours in very short time periods are among the possible threats.
Given the forecast, we advise our team members and medical staff to closely follow the local news and weather for traffic and safety alerts when planning their commute. Please use caution when navigating roadways and plan for additional travel time to make detours or adjust your route if necessary.
To sign up for emergency text message alerts, follow these instructions.
Thank you for your attention.
Lance Lightfoot
Administrator on Call
Dan DiPrisco
EVP on Call