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Austin is feeling the hit of the rare winter weather just one day into the storm with multiple collisions reported, power outages and school closures.
Central Texas is under a Winter Weather Advisory until midnight on Friday due to the rainy, icy and cold conditions all across the region. Austinites can expect to see 1/4 inch of ice accumulation; the National Weather Service is advising people to stay home and off the roads.
Starting on Thursday morning, ice began to form on the roads, leading to multiple collisions, including a 26-car pileup on North State Highway 45 near Parmer Lane which sent 5 people to the hospital. Later that evening in the same area, there was a six-car collision.
If you must drive, this map shows where icy roads are.
Power outages across the city followed suit Thursday, and by 4:30 p.m., more than 25,000 Austinites were without power due to the wintery weather, Austin Energy tweeted.
Much of the outage occured around 183 and Braker Lane, with more than 6,000 power outages, and the Wells Branch area of town, with more than 5,000 people without power.
Austin Energy said crews are currently working to restore power.
Schools have announced delays and cancellations. Austin ISD will conduct class remotely on Friday, while Leander ISD and Del Valle ISD will be remote on Friday as well.
Additionally, cold weather shelters will open Thursday at 6 p.m., providing shelter for both single adults and families.
Make sure to wrap your pipes and get your house ready for a freezing week!
More on the cold weather:
Arctic Austin: How to protect yourself and your home in freezing weather
- 26-car pileup reported as winter weather leads to icy roads - austonia ›
- Winter storm warning in effect for Central Texas - austonia ›
- It's snowing! Here's what that looks like in Austin - austonia ›
- Polar Vortex: Austin brrraces for record-cold temperatures - austonia ›
- Abbott issues disaster declaration preparing for severe weather - austonia ›
- Ice-related car incidents abound during winter freeze - austonia ›
- Austin Energy asks residents to save electricity and avoid blackouts - austonia ›
- Austin power outages could last through Tuesday - austonia ›
- Winter storm prompts another day of closures in Austin - austonia ›
- Another winter storm warning brings more icy weather - austonia ›
- Winter storm prompts another day of closures in Austin - austonia ›
- 2 dead, 4 injured in East Austin fire in winter storm - austonia ›
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(Dolce Neve)
He's since been offering that same experience for the past seven years with his artisanal gelato shop, Dolce Neve, in Austin, alongside his sister and her husband.
Leo Ferrarese, Marco and Franscesa Silvestrini run Dolce Neve. (Dolce Neve)
While gelato always played a big role in Silvestrini's life, it wasn't in his plans to take on a business with his favorite treat. After a few years in New York working as a management consultant, he felt he was missing out on something. "I decided to take a step back and started thinking, what could... I do to make society better and happier, even just for a moment," Silvestrini said.
He thought back to his childhood and the role gelato played in it and wanted to offer the same experience to Americans.
Once he had the product idea down, it came down to location. Growing up among farmers in a small community in Central Italy, Silvestrini knew he wanted a slower pace of living than New York, so he asked around. The answer he got: "Austin." The only thing he knew about what would become his future home was it had a Formula 1 track.
But after visiting once, he felt a great sense of community he didn't feel in The Empire State. "I felt it was not just a good place for a concept like mine, but also a good place to live because at the end of the day, you cannot just think about your business," he said.
"Dolce Neve" translates to "sweet snow." The shops offers 12-18 flavors at a time. (Dolce Neve)
Similarly, his sister Francesca Silvestrini was experiencing the same feelings while studying for her Ph.D. in Ohio before teaming up with Silvestrini. She went back to Italy to be properly trained in making gelato while Silvestrini focused on the business plan. They brought Leo Ferrarese, her husband, onboard and opened their first shop on South First Street in January 2014. The rest is history.
On the menu, you'll find various traditional and innovative flavors that rotate out. Some of the staples include chocolate, 100% vanilla from Madagascar and salted caramel. Other rotating or seasonal flavors include whiskey and pecan, organic cantaloupe sorbet, goat cheese and pecan, almond custard and tiramisu. They've created over 300 flavors together in the span of the business.
So what's next for the shop? Lately, Silvestrini has been thinking a lot about that. With two locations in Austin, one in Houston—he's just not sure if expanding more is the right move. Maintaining a quality product and good service is of utmost importance that he's not willing to sacrifice.
"In order to be happy, it's not about making money, it's about being an integral part of the community," Silvestrini said. "There have been so many cases in which I think what I did today really made a difference in somebody's life."
