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Adding to an eventful start to 2021, Central Texans experienced snow, bringing power outages, school closures and pictures of snowy Austin to social media.
A winter weather advisory went into effect for Travis County and surrounding areas at 6 a.m. Sunday by the National Weather Service. Rain poured until finally the first flurries hit North Austin early in the day. The city continued to be covered in a layer of white snow moving down to South Austin and eventually as south as San Antonio.
It snowed for multiple hours of the day, bringing up to six inches to some parts of Austin, when up to four were forecasted. It was an amount of snow not seen since the winter of 2004.
(Christa McWhirter/Austonia)
The snowfall weighed down on trees, which knocked down some branches on powerlines. By 3 p.m., Austin Energy reported 156 power outages, affecting about 37,000 Austinites.
Repairs occurred all day, but outages continue into the morning. Some traffic light signals have also been affected; the city asks all drivers to treat traffic signals as four-way stops when not working or blinking red.
While this tree limb didn't fall on a power line, you can see how snow accumulation on trees can weigh down limbs.… https://t.co/IEGjjXnnNQ— Austin Energy (@Austin Energy)1610325046.0
Shelters opened up by the city of Austin at 6 p.m. Sunday and will open again Monday. Single adults are directed to the Central Library and families to the Downtown Salvation Army Shelter. Everyone needing shelter will be screened for COVID-19 upon arrival.
The Texas Department of Transportation treated roads for icy conditions early Sunday and through the night to prevent ice from building up. However, with low temperatures, roads are icy into Monday morning, as seen on the TxDOT highway conditions site. Multiple car accidents have been reported Monday morning. North and northwest Austin residents are asked to avoid certain bridges and roads until 9 a.m.: 620, 360, 183, 45, 1431.
Our crews were out treating Austin area roadways today and will be working through the night to prevent ice buildup… https://t.co/DIeUyBdScN— TxDOT Austin (@TxDOT Austin)1610327473.0
Staying clear of icy roads and power outages, local schools opted for students and staff to stay home.
Austin ISD announced Sunday it would be completely remote Monday. IDEA Austin also decided to go remote.
Other school districts, including Eanes, Del Valle, Lake Travis, Round Rock, Leander and Pflugerville, canceled classes altogether.
(Christa McWhirter/Austonia)
While ice still appears on the ground into Monday, there is no more snow forecasted this week. Temperatures will be in the 40s Monday and dip into the 20s at night. The rest of the week will get slightly warmer, staying mostly in the 60s. Thursday will be the warmest day of the week with a high of 70 degrees.
More on snow in 2021:
- Storm headed to Austin, snow expected - austonia ›
- Ice-related car incidents abound during winter freeze - austonia ›
- Austin Energy asks residents to save electricity and avoid blackouts - austonia ›
- Photos: Winter storm brings power outages, snow to Austin - austonia ›
- Austin faces day two without power, some without water, internet - austonia ›
- Winter storm prompts another day of closures in Austin - austonia ›
- Austin may face power outage through Tuesday night—or longer - austonia ›
- Austin could see more power outages, 'total system blackout' - austonia ›
- Winter storm prompts another day of closures in Austin - austonia ›
- Austin begins reconstruction process around the city - austonia ›
Popular
Austin FC couldn't find the stamina to fight off a 2-0 loss against LAFC for their inaugural match on Saturday.
The match, which saw No. 21 Austin FC go head-to-head with No. 2 LAFC in Los Angeles, was broadcast nationally on FOX and FOX Deportes.
Salute the support. 👏
It's only the beginning for @AustinFC. pic.twitter.com/TduorqYr2y
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 18, 2021
Eleven players took the stage as Austin FC players for the first time, with five starters making their MLS debut. "Ringleader" Alex Ring took the captain's armband and wore it well. The defensive midfielder could be seen leading his teammates through their first ever match, but it wasn't enough to stage an Austin takeover in LA.
In the signature style of Head Coach Josh Wolff, the team played with quickness and intensity, nearly connecting on several fast breaks. It was harder for them to stay in front, however, something that Wolff credits with quick decision making and a tough LAFC defense.
"We have a quick attacking team, but I think when you make quick attacks and it fizzles it's just about some decision making," Wolff said. "Are we in position to finish attacks? If not, can we reestablish our attack and get stuff better?"
The club was given some generous breaks from No. 2 LAFC, who had one or both of their star DPs out for the half. While forward Diego Rossi is out for the entire match due to a hamstring injury, Carlos Vela was accidentally pulled too soon on what turned out to be a miscommunication.
"He gave us the sign that he needed to come off," LAFC Head Coach Bob Bradley said on broadcast. "I can't say more than maybe it's my fault."
LA pulled some dramatics and slowly gained more possession throughout the half, but ATXFC's defense wasn't initially as shaky as it seemed in preseason. Jhohan Romana has pulled his weight in getting the ball out of goal, and a 34-year old Matt Besler held his own in center back.
As the second half commenced, however, it became clear that LAFC had the advantage over Austin's first major league team.
Goalkeeper Brad Stuver had his work cut out for him, fending off 24 shot attempts, 11 of which were on goal. He didn't have much time to prepare, either: in the first 30 seconds of play, Stuver had already made a save to keep the match 0-0.
LAFC finally connected in the 61st minute of play as Corey Baird shot one into the bottom right corner. The team capitalized off their momentum and put one past Stuver a second time, drawing roars of approval from the LAFC crowd.
While some last-minute attempts from Jon Gallagher and others were made, Austin FC didn't have the endurance to bring a tie. After seven additional minutes of stoppage time, the club lost their first match 2-0.
While the scoreboard tells one story, Wolff said that the team did well considering the skill of LAFC and the pressure of their club debut.
"We've got to be realistic," Wolff said. "This is the first time this organization has been in front of TV with an opportunity to show itself and I think there were some promising moments. And we're going to maximize those and continue to try to develop those, but there's lots to build on."
The team may have lost, but it still won the support of thousands of Verde fans, dozens of which made it to watch their team's first match. When Stuver and the team made it to bthe stadium, Los Verdes fans were already there to show support, and Stuver said his wife saw the same back in Austin.
"The moment that we pulled into the stadium, we saw Black and Verde fans cheering us on as we got to the stadium," Stuver said. "During warm up, you can just look around and see different groups sitting in different sections of the stadium and it's just truly amazing to see the support in our first game. We know that we want to give the fans everything, because this we play for the city and we play for them."