As the winter crisp sets in, the city of Austin is extending a warm hand to residents, prepping them for the cold months ahead. Austin Energy, Austin Water, and several other city departments are pooling their resources this December to steer the community toward emergency preparedness, energy efficiency, and sustainable practices.

Bright and early on Dec. 10 and 11, Austinites can trot down to the City of Austin Utilities Customer Service Centers, both north and south locations, to snag essential winter gear—think meter keys, insulated hose bib covers, and emergency kit components, these giveaways are sure to go fast so the early bird catches the worm. The effort, as detailed by City of Austin official release, is part of a city-wide initiative to ensure everyone's ready for whatever Jack Frost throws our way this season.

On tap at these events, Austin Energy is doling out free solar phone chargers to keep you connected during outages, while Austin Water is providing shutoff keys and faucet covers to prevent the costly misfortune of burst pipes. Additionally, advice on winter emergency responses is on the offer from the Austin Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, a move to prompt residents into crafting their own emergency preparedness kits.

With winter's unpredictability, the city reminds us to mind the "Four Ps": people, pets, plants, and pipes, disaster-readiness tips and more can be found on the informative ReadyCentralTexas.org. To stay in the loop when the unexpected hits, residents are urged to download the Ready Central Texas mobile app, sign up for Emergency Alerts at WarnCentralTexas.org, and register for Austin Energy’s Outage Alerts by hitting send on a quick text to 287846, the website portals for the city's utilities including austinwater.org and austinenergy.com should be bookmarked for easy access during emergency situations, Austin Water's hotline—a beacon in the dark—remains available around the clock at 512-972-1000, Option 1.