First responders gives tips for freezing temperatures

HEWITT, Texas (KWTX) - The Hewitt Fire Department says it’s stocked and ready in case people call for fires or power outages.

Hewitt’s Fire Department is doing what it can to help people during these frigid temperatures.

Fire chief, Jonathan Christian, said the emergencies can range from carbon monoxide exposure, fires from heating devices and power outages during cold fronts.

“We’re lucky that it doesn’t look like we’re going to have a lot of precipitation with it, but with that we see a lot of different types of emergencies come up,” said Christian.

Chief Christian said he understands that some people are concerned about a possible power outage, especially since some folks experienced them for weeks at a time due to cold weather.

“It can be very worrisome for folks, and they worry about that. We really stress, as a community, that we look out for our neighbors, we look out for each other,” said Christopher.

Chief Christian said people should buy medicine, extra oxygen cylinders, pet food and more.

“Also making sure that you have batteries and maybe an antenna for your TV. Even if you do have power, you may not have cable, so being able to get an antenna channel is good so you can get information weather information,” said Christian.

Along with getting batteries, Chief Christian said it’s vital to make sure the ones in your smoke detectors are working.

“A lot of them are powered by your house power and then have back up batteries. A lot of times we forget to check those backup batteries and make sure they’re working,” said Christian.

Firefighters made sure they took a few trips to the grocery store before the arctic blast comes in.

Chief Christopher said it’s important to shop for the right food items that won’t be difficult to make if your power is out.

“Anything that you have that’s nonperishable that you can use without having to heat something up, or use an outside grill to heat something up, that’s a good way,” said Christian.

Although Chief Christopher expects the call volume to increase, he said the department is more than welcome to help folks out.

“It really is a big family and that’s what we feel about with our community. We want to take care of our community, so we encourage everyone to look out for each other and when you do need us give us a call. We’ll come help as best as we can,” said Christian.

The city of Waco said it will open the Sul Ross Community Center as a warming center from Thursday to Saturday in case folks need it.

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