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February 20, 2021 - The Texas DSHS Covid-19 Dashboard reports 116 active cases on Friday, February 19, 2021.
Of the new cases reported over the past two days, 2 were new confirmed cases and 0 were new probable cases. The dashboard also shows a total of 10 additional recoveries which continues to help lower the number of active cases.
February 18th (2:50pm) Numbers:
Total Confirmed Cases - 860 (2 new cases)
Total Probable Cases - 648 (0 new cases)
Total Fatalities - 51
Total Estimated Active Cases - 123
Total Estimated Recovered - 1,334 (3 new)
February 19th (3:25pm) Numbers:
Total Confirmed Cases - 860 (0 new cases)
Total Probable Cases - 648 (0 new cases)
Total Fatalities - 51
Total Estimated Active Cases - 116 (Correction)
Total Estimated Recovered - 1,341 (7 new)
February 19, 2021 - The 11th week of vaccine distribution starts February 22, 2021 and Shelby County has one provider on the list. Hope Community Medicine is allocated to receive a total of 200 vaccine doses.
Shelby County, a part of Public Health Region 4/5N, reports 1,107 people have been vaccinated with at least one dose and 635 people are fully vaccinated. Shelby County has an estimated population of 19,449 of people 16 years of age and older. With the 11th week shipment, the county has received 1,200 doses.
Past weekly vaccine allocations for Shelby County:
- Week 8, February 1 - Hope Community Medicine 300 vaccine doses
- Week 4, January 4 - Aurora Concepts, PLLC 100 vaccine doses
- Week 4, January 4 - Hope Community Medicine 100 vaccine doses
- Week 2, December 21 - Aurora Concepts, PLLC 100 vaccine doses
- Week 2, December 21 - Brookshires Pharmacy 300 vaccine doses
- Week 2, December 21 - Hope Community Medicine 100 vaccine doses
CDC continues shipping vaccine for the current week, delayed due to weather
As Texas thaws from this week’s winter storms, COVID-19 vaccine will again be distributed across the state in larger amounts. Texas providers have been allocated 591,920 first doses of COVID-19 vaccine from the federal government for the week of Feb. 22. The Texas Department of State Health Services has instructed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to ship those doses to 563 providers in 230 counties across Texas, including 84,240 doses for large vaccine clinics in Harris, Dallas and Tarrant counties supported by the federal government.
The added first doses directed to the federal sites over the next three weeks will allow Texas to allocate additional doses to communities where vaccine supplies have been much more limited, leading to vaccine distribution to the largest number of counties of any week so far.
In addition to the first doses mentioned above, the state is ordering 364,830 doses intended as the second dose for people first vaccinated a few weeks ago. People who had second dose appointments delayed by winter weather should rest assured knowing that vaccine will be available, and their appointments will be rescheduled. Even if they receive the second dose outside of the recommended six-week time frame, they will get the full protection of the second dose and will not need an additional booster shot.
The federal vaccine tracking system shows more than 100,000 first doses and 300,000 second doses intended for delivery this week still awaiting shipment due to weather conditions around out-of-state warehouses and across the country. Those doses are expected to be delivered in the first half of next week, followed by the vaccine allocated for next week.
Texas providers have administered more than 4.3 million doses of vaccine. More than 3 million people have received at least one dose, and almost 1.3 million have been fully vaccinated.
Texas continues to vaccinate health care workers, residents of long-term care facilities, people 65 and older and those with medical conditions that put them at greater risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19. Vaccine remains limited based on the capacity of the manufacturers to produce it, so it will take time for Texas to receive enough vaccine for all the people in the priority populations who want to be vaccinated. Currently, there is not enough vaccine to supply every provider with vaccine every week.
Per a recent label change, each vial of Pfizer vaccine now contains six doses leading to a minimum order of 1,170. People can find more information on COVID-19 vaccine at https://www.dshs.texas.gov/covidvaccine/.
Helpful links:
Update 4pm - ****Supplies Out**** A second distribution is anticipated soon. More information when it’s available
February 19, 2021 - The Emergency Management Office currently has a limited supply of water and MRE’s for distribution. This will be from now till 5:00pm today (February 19) or until supply runs out behind the Shelby County Courthouse.
We have submitted requests for more through the proper resource request submission procedures.
The water is in 32oz containers. With limited supplies, one case of water and one box of MRE’s per vehicle please.
February 19, 2021 - Shelby County Judge Allison Harbison signed a Declaration of Disaster on Wednesday, February 17, 2021.
WHEREAS, the County of Shelby, Texas, on the 17th of February, 2021, has suffered widespread and serious property damage, resulting from severe weather conditions, such as freezing rain, ice, snow, and critically low temperatures.
WHEREAS, such conditions have created a public safety hazard.
WHEREAS, the County Judge of Shelby County, Texas, has determined that extraordinary measures be taken to protect life, as well as, to protect and/or rehabilitate property, and are necessary and hereby ordered.
Now, therefore, be it proclaimed by the County Judge of Shelby County:
I. That a local state of disaster is hereby declared for Shelby County, Texas, pursuant to Section 418.108(a) of the Texas Government Code.
II. Pursuant to Section 418.108(b) of the Texas Government Code, the state of disaster shall continue for a period of not more than seven days from the date of this declaration unless continued or renewed by the Commissioners' Court of Shelby County, Texas.
III. Pursuant to Section 418.108(c) of the Texas Government Code, this declaration of a local disaster shall be given prompt and general publicity and shall be filed promptly with the County Clerk.
IV. Pursuant to Section 418.108(d) of the Texas Government Code, this declaration of a local state of disaster activates the county/city Emergency Management Plan.
Ordered this 17th day of February, 2021.
Status as of Friday, 11 AM
February 19, 2021 - Today we welcomed 200 crews to aid in restoration. Unlike tornado or hurricane damage that generally impacts a portion of our system more than another, this storm produced damage and outages across our full system. While we love our East Texas Pine Trees, they are not a good partner to heavy ice! These widespread outages are making it very difficult to give specific restoration estimates by area at this point. Keep in mind that today is the first day that we’ve had temperatures above freezing. Navigating highways with large, heavy equipment and getting extra crews here has been a challenge on icy roads. We expect to see some good progress today.
At this time, we are prioritizing water systems as they are critical infrastructure. This does not mean we are not working on all other areas as well.
If you are without power, please call 1-800-392-5986. For prompt service, please know your meter number. Due to heavy call volume we are experiencing some delays in recording your outage. Please continue to call our lines. Without your meter number, you will experience longer times or dropped calls as we cannot connect everyone with a live agent with this many outage calls still coming in.
There are several news stories circulating about high bills to come and price gouging within the electric industry. Please know that only a small portion of the DETEC system (less than 1%) is within the much talked about ERCOT system. In addition, you are served by a non-profit cooperative whose price structure is not as told in these stories. PLEASE DO NOT WORRY over these fear filled stories. The current focus is restoring power and getting folks back to a comfortable state in their homes, this coverage is counterproductive to that goal.
February 19, 2021 - Sabine State Bank will open at noon today, February 19 and will extend banking hours on Saturday, February 20 until 2pm. Please check back for updates as weather conditions change.
February 18, 2021 - Shelby County Offices will be closed Friday, February 19, 2021 due to road conditions, power outages, and water outages. We plan on opening for business Monday, February 22, 2021.
Everyone please be careful and stay safe!
February 17, 2021 - Shelby County Offices will be closed on Thursday, February 18th due to the current weather crisis.
Everyone please stay off the roadways.
Please stay safe and warm!!
February 16, 2021 - Due to the weather, Shelby County Offices will be closed on Wednesday, February 17, 2021.
The Commissioners' Court meeting is cancelled for Wednesday, February 17.
I urge everyone to stay off the roadways, if you have to go out, please be careful. Stay warm and safe.
February 15, 2021 - Due to dangerous road conditions all County Offices will be closed Tuesday, February 16th.
February 14, 2021 - The County Offices will close Monday, February 15, in observance of President's Day.
February 18, 2021 - The winter weather continues and many are needing to venture out to get fuel for generators and vehicles. Shelby County Today will keep a list updated of open gas stations with fuel available. Please be advised - the situation can change quickly so each notice we receive and post, we will include a time stamp. As of 2:17pm lines don't appear to be too long. Hurst Street in Center has one lane open each on the northbound and southbound side.
If you know of a fuel station open and with fuel available, email SCT at sctoday@att.net or text it to 936-332-4845. Please include gas or diesel or both, the name and location of station, and any other relevant details.
- Quick Stop in Joaquin (1:33pm)
- NuWay in Joaquin (1:33pm)
- Quick Stop in Tenaha, Credit Card Only (12:40pm)
- CheckOut in Logansport has supreme fuel (12:35pm)
- CEFCO on San Augustine Street in Center has gas, no diesel (2:17pm)
- Texaco at Southview Circle in Center has diesel and gas (2:17pm)
- Exxon on Hurst Street in Center has diesel and gas (2:17pm)
- No fuel at Shell station on 96 North (2:28pm)
- No fuel at Murphy in Center, they are closed and Walmart is closed (2:28pm)
- Brookshire Brothers in Center has fuel, pay at pump only, credit card required. Grocery Store open until 5pm. No milk, bread, eggs, or propane. (2:14pm)
- H&S Grocery on Shelbyville street is Open. (3:30pm)
- Brookshire Brothers and Quick Stop in Timpson (2pm)
February 18, 2021 - This week has been historic in terms of the severity of the weather across the state. I am praying for the safety of our community and our state.
Here are five things happening around your state:
1. Winter weather cripples Texas
A large winter system blew through Texas this week dropping 6-8 inches of snow and ice in parts of the state and leaving millions without power for days at a time. Freezing temperatures coupled with water and snow on the roads lead to iced out conditions, impassable roads, and multiple, lasting road closures. These conditions led to a shutdown of most businesses, including the state legislature which cancelled all of the scheduled hearings this week. Those hearings will be rescheduled at a later date. Local officials and power suppliers have been working hard to get Texans’ power back online.
The governor announced at a press conference this week that he ordered natural gas producers not to export any natural gas outside of the state until after this crisis is over to allow power generators to continue working. Additionally, he encouraged Texans to start reaching out to plumbers to plan repairs if pipes burst in your home. He encouraged the Board of Plumbing Examiners to grant provisional licenses to out-of-state plumbers and those who have let their license lapse in the past two years.
2. ERCOT and why Texas has its own electric grid
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) runs Texas’ electric grid. ERCOT was formed in 1970 and was tasked with managing grid reliability in accordance with national standards. Importantly, ERCOT is an entity that is unique to Texas as our electric grid is entirely within our borders, so it is not regulated by the federal government. Most of Texas is covered by ERCOT, except for El Paso, northern parts of the panhandle, and parts of Southeast Texas – including the majority of Senate District 3. The ERCOT grid remains beyond federal regulation because it is not under the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s jurisdiction as FERC can only regulate interstate electric transmission. Though Texas’ grid remains independent, it does have ties to other grids including Mexico’s power grid and a few connections to the Eastern Interconnection through Oklahoma. Texas’ grid has its roots in the way electric utilities developed in the early 20th century. Small plants sprouted up throughout Texas as a way to supply power to the cities. They began linking to each other and furthered these connections during WWII to move power from dams along rivers to power factories that were helping with the war effort. These combined efforts formed the Texas Interconnected System, which eventually became ERCOT.
3. Texas ranked #1 exporter for 19th year in a row
Texas was ranked the number one exporter of all goods and products in the United States for the 19th year in a row. Texas ended 2020 with $279 billion in export trade, which is more exports than the next three highest ranked states combined, including California, New York, and Louisiana. Texas also ranked number one in exporting technology products for the eighth year in a row. Those exports totaled $44.8 billion. This is just another reason Texas is the number one state for business.
4. Senate Business and Commerce Committee to host hearing on ERCOT, power outages
Due to the failures of the ERCOT system and power outages across the state, Business and Commerce committee chair Senator Kelly Hancock has called a hearing of the Senate Business and Commerce Committee to investigate extreme weather preparedness and circumstances that led to the widespread power outages as directed by ERCOT. The committee will also examine generator preparedness and performance, natural gas supply, the reliability of renewables during this crisis, and overall ERCOT resilience. The committee will meet on February 25th at 9am in the Capitol building. To tune into this hearing, please visit https://senate.texas.gov/events.php.
5. Best practices during winter storm
During this extreme weather event, it’s important to keep in mind some best practices to ensure the health and safety of you and your community. Keep your thermostat at 68 degrees or lower if possible to conserve energy. Draw your curtains to preserve heat. Try and reduce your electric footprint by unplugging devices not in use. If you lose power, do not bring in any grills or outdoor cooking devices to heat your home or run your car in your garage. That can cause carbon monoxide poisoning which is a silent killer. Wear loose layers of clothing. Go to a warming shelter if possible. Find those at https://tdem.texas.gov/warm/.
February 18, 2021, 1:15pm - SWEPCO workers and contractors early Thursday began checking on damage and mobilizing crews to restore service to the 22,600 customers without power.
"As we saw the forecast for ice move south, we positioned workers in Shreveport, Natchitoches and Center. These line, tree and support workers are out assessing damaging and restoring power," said Drew Seidel, SWEPCO vice president of Region Distribution Operations.
SWEPCO has 1,500 internal and external resources working in our hardest-hit areas. Additional crews called to help SWEPCO were unable to reach our staging areas due to hazardous road conditions.
The areas most affected by the winter storm include DeSoto, Natchitoches and Sabine parishes and Shelby County, Texas.
SWEPCO estimates power will be restored for 95% of customers by the following times:
- Caddo and Bossier parishes – 10 p.m. Friday
- Center, Texas – 10 p.m. Friday
- Bienville, DeSoto, Grant, Natchitoches, Red River, Sabine, Vernon, Webster and Winn parishes – 10 p.m. Monday
Thousands of customers will see service restored each day. Restoration in heavily-damaged areas will continue into next week.
How SWEPCO Restores Power
SWEPCO prioritizes restoration efforts to safely get the largest number of customers on in the shortest amount of time and addresses restoration in these four steps:
First, assess damage and restore critical services, such as hospitals and fire departments
Second, restore outages that affect large groups of customers
Third, fix problems that affect smaller numbers of customers and
Fourth, make repairs that affect individual customers.
How to Report, Track Outages
- Log on to SWEPCO.com to report an outage and to sign up for text and email updates, including an estimated time of restoration.
- Use the SWEPCO app, available for download via the App Store or Google Play.
- Call 1-888-218-3919 to report your outage.
- Visit SWEPCO.com/OutageMap to find detailed information without logging into your account.
Stay Safe
- Assume that any downed utility line is energized. Stay away and keep children and pets away from downed lines. Report it immediately to SWEPCO at 1-888-218-3919.
- Be extremely careful when using any alternate forms of heating, cooking and lighting.
- If you use a portable or RV generator, do not plug the generator into your circuit box. Portable generators can "backfeed" electricity up the line and risk the lives of repair workers and the public. Follow the manufacturers' instructions carefully, and plug essential appliances directly into the generator.
If your power goes out
- If you lose power, please turn off heating, water heating and large appliances to enable smoother service restoration. Once power is restored, switch the devices back on gradually over the following 30 to 45 minutes. Taking this step helps prevent a sudden surge in demand after power is restored, which could result in a second outage.
For updates and photos, follow SWEPCO on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO)
SWEPCO, an American Electric Power (AEP: NYSE) company, serves more than 543,000 customers in northwest and central Louisiana, northeast Texas and the Texas Panhandle, and western Arkansas. SWEPCO's headquarters are in Shreveport, La. News releases and other information about SWEPCO can be found at SWEPCO.com. Connect with us at Facebook.com/SWEPCO, Twitter.com/SWEPCOnews, Instagram.com/swepco, Youtube.com/SWEPCOtv and LinkedIn.com/company/swepco.
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