Houston storm: Power expected to be restored to those most affected

Houston, TX –

Houston-area residents hit by last week’s deadly storms that left at least seven dead were finally getting some good news as officials said they expected power to be restored by here Sunday evening for a majority of the hundreds of thousands of people still in the dark and without air conditioning in the middle. hot and humid weather.

Help was also on the way in the form of disaster aid from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency and Small Business Administration loans, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said , the highest elected official in the county where Houston is located. The federal aid, which can help pay for temporary housing and repairs, will help residents affected by last week’s storms as well as flooding caused by heavy rains in late April and early May in parts of Houston, Harris County and several counties north of Houston.

Widespread destruction from Thursday’s storms paralyzed much of Houston. Thunderstorms and hurricane-force winds devastated the city, reducing businesses and other structures to piles of debris, uprooting trees and shattering glass from downtown skyscrapers. A tornado also touched down near Cypress, a northwest suburb of Houston.

More than 352,000 homes and businesses in Texas remained without power as of Sunday morning, most of them in the Houston area.

“It’s a madhouse out here,” said Cypress resident Hallie O’Bannon. “You know we have no power. No hot water. It was really crazy.

CenterPoint Energy said it expects about 80 percent of affected customers in the Houston area to have service restored by Sunday evening. Hidalgo said 90% of customers could be restored by Wednesday.

Officials feared that high-voltage transmission towers destroyed by high winds would significantly prolong power restoration efforts.

“They were able to go around and around these destroyed towers thanks to new technology. This is great news,” Hidalgo said.

But Hidalgo warned residents that if their home’s equipment is damaged, they won’t have power until residents make repairs.

More than 4,600 customers were still without power Sunday morning in Louisiana, which was also hit by high winds and a suspected tornado.

CenterPoint Energy said 2,000 employees and more than 5,000 contractors were working in the Houston area to restore power.

“We understand that the warmer temperatures we are experiencing in Houston and surrounding communities make it even more important to restore lighting and air conditioning,” said Lynnae Wilson, CenterPoint’s senior vice president of electrical operations, in a statement.

The U.S. National Weather Service said in a post on the social media site X that residents should expect “sunny, warm and increasingly humid days” in the Houston area. Maximum temperatures of around 32°C were expected this week, with heat indices likely near 39°C by midweek.

On Sunday, five cooling centers were opened in Houston. Authorities in Houston and Harris County were distributing food, ice and water at five other locations. More than 2,500 cars picked up food, ice and water Saturday.

Houston-area school districts canceled classes for more than 400,000 students Friday. The Houston Independent School District, the state’s largest, said power had been restored to nearly 200 campuses and those schools would be open Monday. But 77 other campuses remained without power. School district officials planned to provide an update on those campuses later Sunday.