Winter Weather Update - February 17 3 pm

2/17/2025

Mayor Nichols Signs Emergency Disaster Declaration; City Hall, Other Public-facing Services to be Impacted Tuesday, Wednesday

 The City of Tulsa, Tulsa Area Emergency Management Agency (TAEMA), and various community partners have mobilized resources for extreme cold temperatures and winter weather. 

Earlier today, Mayor Monroe Nichols signed an emergency disaster declaration, which allows the City to mobilize budgetary and emergency management resources for the snow and frigid weather. The declaration expires Monday, Feb. 24. 

Getting People Inside
Outreach teams from A Way Home for Tulsa agencies are working to ensure those experiencing homelessness have knowledge of safe and warm spaces available to them. 

As part of ongoing operations, two overflow shelters opened today:

• One Hope Tulsa- Rose Bowl (7419 E. 11 St.) – Operating as an overflow shelter for adults
• Tulsa Dream Center (4122 W. 55 Pl.) – Serving as an overflow shelter for adults; this location is also pet-friendly

These overflow shelters are in addition to the existing network of services available at:

• Salvation Army Center of Hope (102 N. Denver Ave.) – Open 24/7
• Tulsa Day Center (415 W. Archer St.) – Open 24/7, pet-friendly (limited capacity)
• John 3:16 Mission (506 N. Cheyenne Ave.) – Open 24/7
• Youth Services of Tulsa (311 S. Madison Ave.) – Serving youth in need of shelter
• Denver Ave. Station (319 S. Denver Ave.) – Open Feb. 18-Feb. 20 as warming station

IMPORTANT REMINDER: Please DO NOT donate firewood to individuals to begin outside fires during this weather event. High winds and open flames pose serious safety risks to individuals, animals, and nearby structures.

For ways you can help with donations, in addition to the latest information on warming stations and emergency shelters, visit Housing Solutions’ Winter Weather Resources page and follow Housing Solutions on Facebook, @Housing Solutions.

If you’re an organization interested in opening as an overflow shelter location during weather events, visit www.cityoftulsa.org/weather and click the “Warming Stations” drop down.

City Service Impacts on Tuesday, Feb. 18, and Wednesday, Feb. 19

• City Hall - Cashier stations on the main floor at City Hall and at the Permit Center on 4^th floor will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday. The Clerks Office will be closed Tuesday. The regular meeting for the Tulsa Metropolitan Area Planning Commission (TMPAC) is cancelled on Wednesday.
• Tulsa Municipal Court – Tulsa Municipal Court will be closed and cases scheduled for Feb. 18 and Feb. 19 will be automatically rescheduled for April 3.
• Tulsa Animal Services – The Tulsa Animal Services shelter at 3031 N. Erie Ave. will be closed on Tuesday and Wednesday for public adoptions. Lost pet adoptions and return-to-owner services will remain unaffected.
• Development Services Inspections – Inspections from the City’s Development Services department will be canceled on Tuesday and Wednesday and resume when neighborhood street conditions improve. We will be doing emergency gas meter inspections (pending weather severity). To schedule an inspection for critical utility repairs, contact Stephen Scott at (918) 519-8769 for Plumbing and Mechanical, Curtis Blevins at (918) 857-4004 for Building, or Steve Malugani at (918) 519-8746 for Electrical.

Tulsa Parks Closures

• All Tulsa Parks Recreation Centers will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday, including Centennial, Oxley Nature Center and Tulsa Garden Center.
• Mohawk and Page Belcher Golf Courses will be closed until at least Friday. Re-opening will be determined by course conditions.
• The Williams Crossing Pedestrian Bridge and unheated restrooms will be closed until at least Thursday. Trails will not be plowed until after snowfall has ceased so trails may be hazardous.
• The Tulsa Zoo will be closed Tuesday through Thursday.
• The Tulsa Performing Arts Center, BOK event center, and Convention Center will be closed to the public Tuesday and Wednesday. At this point, public events scheduled for this weekend will go on as planned.

While in-person services are closed, most City business can be conducted online or over the phone:

• Pay an online utility bill
• Pay a traffic ticket online
• Use the online Permit Portal
• File a 311 request or question
  • Call 311 during business hours, or (918) 596-2100
  • Visit tulsa311.com or use the 311 app
  • Email [email protected]

Trash & Recycling
Trash service is expected to run Tuesday as normal. If service is canceled for Wednesday and Thursday, Wednesday’s trash will be collected Friday and Thursday’s trash will be collected on Saturday, weather permitting.  

Bulky Waste/Dead Animal Pickup

All scheduled bulky waste pickups will be postponed on Feb. 18 through Feb. 20, with services expected to resume Feb. 21. While affected customers have been notified, missed collections will be rescheduled as follows: Tuesday, Feb. 18, pickups will move to Tuesday, Feb. 25; both Wednesday, Feb. 12, and Wednesday, Feb. 19, pickups will move to Saturday, Feb. 22; and Thursday, Feb. 20, pickups will move to Thursday, Feb. 27.

Additionally, dead animal pickups will only be conducted for large animals requiring specialized machinery.

The Green Waste Facility will remain open and operate under normal hours.

Street Preparations
Starting tonight, City of Tulsa street crews will start 24-hour snow and ice operations. City brine crews will report at midnight tonight to address elevated surfaces with brine (salt/water mixture). At 2 a.m., all AM shift crews will report to prepare for snowfall expected early in the morning on Tuesday. The City will adjust this plan based on weather conditions and will continue this response until main roads are passable.

As background, the City of Tulsa is responsible for clearing snow and ice from all arterial (main) streets, but not from most major highways that pass through. The only highways the City treats are the Gilcrease Expressway (except for the Turnpike extension), and the L.L. Tisdale Expressway. All other highway segments in Tulsa (i.e. I-44, I-244, Broken Arrow Expressway, the Creek Turnpike, Highway 169, etc.) are the responsibility of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.

The City's snow and ice routes, in addition to the resources the City has to treat Tulsa's roads, can be found online at  www.cityoftulsa.org/winterpreparedness. 

Waterline Breaks
During times of extreme cold weather, waterline breaks can occur. To report waterline breaks, residents can first check the waterline break board at www.cityoftulsa.org/breakboard to see whether the break has been reported. To make a report, call Water Dispatch at (918) 596-9488. Residents can also report waterline breaks via email, with no wait times, to [email protected]. 

Repairs are prioritized based on when the waterlines are shut down. The City’s main focus is to repair waterlines and restore service to all affected customers.

Tips for preventing household frozen or busted pipes can be found online.

Pet Safety
Tulsa Animal Services is working with the Tulsa Day Center and the Tulsa Dream Center (shelters that accept pets) to ensure they have needed resources, such as vaccines and intake sheets.

As a reminder, all pets need to be brought inside when temperatures drop below 25 degrees (enforceable by ordinance). Pets with outdoor access need to have access to water that isn’t left outside, as it will freeze.

If you see someone leaving their dog out for prolonged periods of time in this weather, call Tulsa Animal Services at (918) 596-8001. Pets should only be let out for short periods of time for things like bathroom breaks, etc.

PSO
PSO is monitoring the weather closely and is ready to respond if needed. Utility crews are prepared to mobilize should any service be affected by the winter weather. While no impacts are immediately apparent, PSO wants to remind Tulsans of the steps they can take in the event of an outage.

• If your home loses power, notify PSO using the mobile app, psoklahoma.com, or by phone at 1-833-PSO-OUTG (833) 776-6884.
• For safety’s sake, assume that any downed utility line is energized with deadly electric current. Stay away from the line and do not touch it with anything. Report it to PSO at 1-833-PSO OUTG or 1-833-776-6884.
• Please do not approach crews and utility vehicles you see in your neighborhood to ask when power will be restored. Doing so could jeopardize your safety. Outward vision from the large utility vehicles can be limited. A crew may not see someone who has walked up to their work truck.
• If you use a generator, please follow the manufacturer’s operating instructions. Do not operate the unit indoors. Connect appliances directly to the generator’s electric outlets…not to the main electrical panel of your home or business unless you have had an electric load transfer switch installed to isolate your home’s wiring from PSO’s electric system. Otherwise, you jeopardize the safety of utility workers.
• If you evacuate your house, please disconnect (open) your home’s main electrical breaker after you turn off the generator. This will eliminate any possibility of the generator feeding power back into PSO’s electric system.

Additional information and cold weather tips can be found online.

ONG
Oklahoma Natural Gas continues to monitor the weather and is prepared to deliver safe, reliable natural gas to its customers’ homes and businesses across the state.

The accumulation of snow and ice increases the potential for damage to natural gas meters and above-ground pipeline facilities

Here are some tips to stay safe and warm:

• Keep exhaust and combustion air vents of natural gas appliances clear of snow and ice to maintain smooth operation and prevent carbon monoxide from entering homes and other structures.
• Extreme care should be taken when removing ice or snow from such vents or a natural gas meter. When possible, use a broom instead of a shovel to avoid damage, and never stand or climb on unsafe ground or surfaces to reach vents.
• If you smell natural gas:
  • Leave the area immediately.
  • Do not use electrical equipment.
  • Call 911 and Oklahoma Natural Gas at (800) 458-4251

Additionally, customers can follow the tips below to help reduce their natural gas use:

• Keep warm, not hot — when possible, wear additional layers of clothing and check your programmable settings.
• Hold off doing chores that involve using natural gas appliances until temperatures rebound.
• Set the temperature on your water heater to 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Apply weatherstripping and caulk to seal gaps and cracks around doors and windows.
• Change or clean the filters on heating or air conditioning units.
• Install foam gaskets to seal outlets and electrical switches.

Fire and Police
The Fire and Police Departments are prepped and ready for winter weather and life-threatening cold.

EMSA

EMSA is prepared for the upcoming winter weather expected in Tulsa. Currently, its 52 ambulances are well equipped to handle winter weather conditions, and all units carry supplies to help paramedics and EMTs respond to medical emergencies during winter weather events (ice melt, snow cleats, hand warmers, etc.).

It is vitally important residents limit unnecessary travel during snow/ice storms to help clear the roadways for first responders and EMSA – if you must travel, please give ambulances and first response vehicles plenty of space and room on roadways. Additionally, with the forecasted sub-freezing temperatures, Tulsans need to be dressed for the weather and always carry their fully charged cell phone with them so they can dial 9-1-1 in the event of an emergency.

Metro Link Tulsa
In addition to opening Denver Avenue Station as a warming station, all ride fares will be FREE from Feb. 18-20.

Tulsa Health Department
All Tulsa Health Department locations will be closed tomorrow.

Home & Travel Preparedness
The City of Tulsa wants to remind residents of the steps to take at home and while traveling.

At Home:

• Check smoke detectors
• Use space heaters safely
• Do not use ovens or stoves as a source of heat
• Leave the generator outside and take proper precautions
• Insulate windows and doors
• Protect your pipes
• Unhook exterior garden hoses

While Traveling:

• Check your battery
• Bring an emergency kit with you (i.e. warm clothes, shovel, food, water, other tools)
• Fuel up

For a more complete list of tips and resources, visit the City of Tulsa’s winter weather resources page at www.cityoftulsa.org/weather.

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