Not the City of Baytown. Official site: baytown.org.

When it freezes in Baytown: warming centers, pipes and power

Hard freezes don't come every winter here, but they come often enough to matter. Baytown has opened a warming center in each of the last three winters, and the February 2021 storm shut down the plant that treats the city's water. Here is what the city does in a freeze and what you can do before one.

A painting of a sunlit kitchen on a winter morning, at golden hour

Where to get warm

When a hard freeze is forecast, the city opens a warming center, a heated public building where anyone can come in out of the cold. The location changes from storm to storm, so check the city's notice for the next one. Recent winters:

January 2024: the city opened a warming station during that month's freeze.
January 2025: Memorial Baptist Church, 600 W. Sterling Avenue, opening at 8 a.m. on January 20 and staying open into the next day, with the city deciding day by day whether to keep it open. Harris County also had two warming centers on standby in the north part of the county.
January 2026, Winter Storm Fern: the Baytown Community Center, opening at noon on a Saturday and staying open for the length of the storm. Police officers also handed out blankets to vulnerable residents, and volunteers did outreach before the cold arrived.

Harris County lists warming centers across the region on its Ready Harris site. For people who need a bed, Bay Area Homeless Services runs Baytown's emergency shelter.

Your pipes

Exposed pipes freeze first: outdoor spigots, lines in an unheated garage or attic, and pipes along outside walls. The American Red Cross recommends:

Let cold water drip from faucets fed by exposed pipes.
Open kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors so warm air reaches the plumbing.
Keep the thermostat at the same setting day and night, and no lower than 55 degrees if you leave.
Disconnect and drain garden hoses, close the inside valves that feed outdoor spigots, and leave the outdoor spigot open so the water left in it can expand.
Keep the garage door closed if water lines run through the garage.

If a pipe freezes, warm it with a hair dryer, a heating pad, a space heater kept away from anything that can burn, or towels soaked in hot water. Never use an open flame.

If a pipe bursts, shut off the water at your meter or main valve. Our water service page covers who handles a leak on your side of the meter and who handles one on the city's.

Power and heat

CenterPoint Energy runs the poles and wires in Baytown, whoever sends your electric bill, so report an outage to CenterPoint. Our power outage page has the links.

Carbon monoxide is the danger people forget in a winter outage. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says:

Never use a gas range or oven to heat a home.
Never run a generator inside a home or garage, or less than 20 feet from a window, door or vent.
Never use a charcoal grill or camping stove indoors.
Use a battery-powered carbon monoxide detector when a generator is running.

If someone feels dizzy, sick or confused near a heater or generator, get everyone outside and call 911.

A closed refrigerator keeps food safe for about four hours without power. A full freezer keeps food safe for about 48 hours, a half-full one for about 24.

Water

The February 2021 storm knocked the Baytown Area Water Authority's treatment plant offline, and the city put its water system under a boil water order from February 15 to February 21. If the pressure drops in a freeze, our boil water notice page explains what to do.

Roads and schools

The city asks residents to stay off the roads during freezing conditions. If you must drive, keep a full tank, and carry blankets, water and snacks. The state's Drive Texas site and Houston TranStar post road and bridge conditions, including the Fred Hartman Bridge and Interstate 10.

Local schools close for hard freezes too. In January 2026, Goose Creek CISD, Barbers Hill ISD, Crosby ISD and Lee College all closed for Winter Storm Fern. Our school closings page shows where each one posts the news.

Read the fine print

Warming center locations and hours come from the city's notices for past storms. The next one may be somewhere else.
Pipe and carbon monoxide advice comes from the Red Cross and the CDC, not the city.
The 911 line is for emergencies. The city asks residents to use the police non-emergency line for anything else.

Before you go

Sign up for Baytown Alert, the city's free notification service, before the cold arrives.
Buy faucet covers and find your water shut-off valve while it is warm out.
Check on older neighbors and anyone living alone.
Bring pets inside.

Sources

City of Baytown, Be Prepared, Stay Aware, January 23, 2026 (https://www.baytown.org/Blog.aspx?IID=315)
City of Baytown, Warming Center Set to Open, January 19, 2025 (https://baytown.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=1025&ARC=1335)
City of Baytown, Warnings & Alerts (https://baytown.org/1184/Warnings-Alerts)
Baytown Sun, Baytown opens warming station Monday, January 2024 (https://baytownsun.com/local/baytown-opens-warming-station-monday/article_3f7e4edc-b3f5-11ee-89e9-cf25e6b04f63.html)
Baytown Sun, Baytown to open warming center as Winter Storm Fern approaches, January 2026 (https://baytownsun.com/local/baytown-to-open-warming-center-as-winter-storm-fern-approaches/article_d076add7-315e-416f-a543-0251f72da260.html)
Baytown Sun, Baytown boil water order lifted, February 2021 (https://baytownsun.com/local/baytown-boil-water-order-lifted/article_e63cd188-7539-11eb-8b33-b77df8a19226.html)
American Red Cross, Frozen Pipes (https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/types-of-emergencies/winter-storm/frozen-pipes.html)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, What to Do to Protect Yourself During a Power Outage (https://www.cdc.gov/natural-disasters/response/what-to-do-protect-yourself-during-a-power-outage.html)
FOX 26 Houston, List: Houston-area school districts closed on Monday, January 26, 2026 (https://www.fox26houston.com/news/houston-winter-storm-closure-closings-schools-district-list-monday)
Ready Harris (https://www.readyharris.org/)
CenterPoint Energy, Outage Center (https://www.centerpointenergy.com/en-us/InYourCommunity/Pages/Outage-Center.aspx)
findhelp, Bay Area Homeless Services, emergency shelter services, Baytown (https://www.findhelp.org/bay-area-homeless-services-(bahs)--baytown-tx--emergency-shelter-services/5642896179462144?postal=77520)

En español

Las heladas fuertes no llegan todos los inviernos a Baytown, pero la ciudad ha abierto un centro de calentamiento en cada uno de los últimos tres: en enero de 2024, en enero de 2025 en la Iglesia Bautista Memorial, en West Sterling Avenue, y en enero de 2026, durante la tormenta Fern, en el Baytown Community Center. El lugar cambia de una tormenta a otra; la ciudad lo anuncia en Baytown Alert, su servicio gratuito de avisos, en su sitio web y en redes sociales. Antes de la helada, deje gotear las llaves de agua, abra las puertas de los gabinetes, desconecte y vacíe las mangueras, cierre las válvulas interiores que alimentan las llaves de afuera y deje abiertas esas llaves de afuera. Nunca use el horno de gas para calentar la casa ni encienda un generador adentro o a menos de 20 pies de una ventana o puerta. Para un corte de luz, avise a CenterPoint Energy. En la tormenta de febrero de 2021, la planta que trata el agua de la ciudad dejó de funcionar y hubo que hervir el agua del 15 al 21 de febrero.