No Power and Fuel Scarcity For Millions In Texas
Hurricane Beryl came and left Houston with many monumental problems. The storm left at least 1.4 million residents without power in hot temperatures, store closures, and long lines for fuel at the few stores that had a way to deliver it to customers, according to AP.
Abbie Kamin, a Houston City Councilman, called the extended power outage a “life safety concern, and “We say ‘everything we can do’ to get the lights back on. In my opinion, respectfully, they should be on.”
Houston residents had little time to react over the weekend. For days, many weather forecasters, including the National Weather Service, had predicted that Hurricane Beryl would land somewhere along the mid-Texas coast between Rockport and Matagorda Bay as a Category 1 storm. But Beryl meandered its way up the coast, slowly picking up strength before making landfall just south of Houston.
The hurricane also made its way into Texas at night, making it harder to respond. Many companies that had placed emergency personnel for utilities placed them in South Texas for their safety. Once the storm hit, they left where they were positioned but had to drive north to Houston to respond. It took at least three to four hours to travel back to where Beryl Hit.
According to PowerOutage.us, the storm left over 2.7 million residents without power when it first hit, and the electric companies restored over a million customers within the first 24 hours. PowerOutage.us said that was a monumental feat considering the severity of the storm.
Hurricane Beryl Makes Landfall In Texas
Gallery Credit: Rob Carroll
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