Courtesy Photo/Larry Reneau

CEDAR CREEK LAKE–From school and city closures to road accidents to mass power outages, the winter storm that rolled through Texas last week had a significant impact on the Cedar Creek Lake area.
The majority of schools in our region were forced to close from Monday afternoon through Thursday, with some announcing a late start or closure on Friday. Municipalities also faced closures and cancellations of meetings as the ice accumulated on roadways making travel risky.
Fire-Rescue departments were inundated with emergency calls as accidents on bridges and roadways occurred. Payne Springs Fire-Rescue noted three significant accidents in the first 48 hours of icy conditions on the bridge between Payne Springs and Gun Barrel City. Though TxDOT had been out to treat the bridge several times during the week, roads and bridges remained treacherous. Local residents stated that HWY 85 in Seven Points and beyond was “solid ice,” as emergency response teams urged locals to stay off the roads if at all possible.
While families were doing their best to stay warm at home, disaster struck as major power outages occurred due to ice accumulation on trees, powerlines and poles, according to Oncor and Trinity Valley Electric Cooperative. The initial loss impacted 11,000 homes and businesses across the Trinity Valley, but quick response nearly halved that figure. In the Cedar Creek Lake area, over 1,400 homes remained without electricity Jan. 31. While some locals were only out of power for a few minutes, others faced power outages which were still unrepaired as of Feb. 3.
“This area has been hardest hit from the beginning and crews have been battling a continuous series of falling limbs and trees. This has resulted in the long outages, and repeated outages in the same areas that many members have experienced. While temperatures have improved, the resulting downed trees and very muddy conditions are slowing progress considerably,” said TVEC in an update on Thursday. “Work will continue nonstop through the night and into tomorrow as the crews seek to wrap up most outages by tomorrow evening.”
Linemen worked around the clock to restore power to homes across Cedar Creek Lake, removing ice and dead trees, repairing lines and taking naps in their trucks as they could. 
TVEC stated that every available tree and line crew was working to restore power, with additional resources on the way. As of Saturday, only 90 customers remained without electricity, all of which had power restored on Sunday.