Celeste Schurman
On Sunday afternoon, more than 385,000 CenterPoint Energy customers were without power nearly a week after Hurricane Beryl knocked out the lights for millions across Houston.
In a news release, CenterPoint said it’s on track to restore power to 90 percent of the 2.26 million customers affected by the category one hurricane by Monday evening, but the company’s power restoration map indicates some city streets scattered across the metropolitan might not be fully restored until July 19.
The company’s restoration efforts are “tracking ahead of prior expectations” to restore 85 percent of those customers by the end of the weekend. Still, CenterPoint has been the target of criticism as power outages extend a days after the storm.
RELATED: Houston power outages: CenterPoint releases outage map; 1.2 million still without power after Beryl
“Our crews are doing extraordinary work in neighborhoods across Greater Houston and have continued to accelerate restoration despite challenging conditions as thunderstorms rolled through Houston late yesterday,” Lynnae Wilson, a company spokesperson, said in a statement. “Looking ahead, we know those customers who are not yet restored are counting on us, and we are committed to working until we get their lights back on.”
Abbott in Houston
Tom Perumean
Texas Governor Greg Abbott is demanding answers from CenterPoint Energy after its slow response to Hurricane Beryl. Abbott was in Houston Sunday to get updates from local officials on recovery efforts.
He was adamant that Texas lawmakers will hold the company accountable for what he called major missteps in preparation and response to the storm last week.
“The failure of power companies to provide power to their customers is completely unacceptable,” Abbott said during a press briefing at Gallery Furniture. “Power companies along the Gulf Coast must be prepared to deal with hurricanes, to state the obvious.”
Abbott also issued several ultimatums to CenterPoint, demanding a plan to clear vegetation from around power lines and an updated strategy on how to effectively pre-stage workers before the next storm hits. He wants those plans by July 31st.
“CenterPoint must specify actions that it will take in the coming months that it did not take in Beryl that will reduce or eliminate power outages in the event of another tropical storm arriving at the Gulf Coast,” Abbott said.
The Governor also says lawmakers will take a closer look at CenterPoint’s service territory to determine if the company has too much area to manage. The company is responsible for the vast majority of power distribution in the Houston area.
“Maybe they have too large of an area for them to manage adequately,” Abbott said. “It’s time to reevaluate whether or not CenterPoint should have such a large territory.”
In August, lawmakers will hold hearings on how CenterPoint has handled the response to Hurricane Beryl. Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick said he’s ready to ask some tough questions.
“One of my first questions will be, does CenterPoint still look at Houston as a priority of their business? They’re a different company than they used to be,” Patrick said.
City leaders condemn threats against workers
In a social media post last week, the company said crews working to restore power had received several threats.
“Our employees have deep roots in the communities we serve and the mutual assistance crews are far from home to help our community recover from Hurricane Beryl,” according to the company. “We ask our customers that if they see our linemen, to please keep your distance and allow them to do their job to ensure a safe restoration.”
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo Friday said she has heard reports of someone pulling a gun on a group of linemen.
On Saturday, Houston Mayor John Whitmire said he has assured utility workers that they will be safe while working to restore power in the city.
“I understand the anger and frustration of being without electricity, but you don’t take it into your own hands and harass or threaten the linemen,” he said. “They are here doing us a favor. They are doing nothing wrong. They are assisting us. They have families.
‘Crippled by a windstorm’
On Sunday afternoon, Ferry Irawan cleared debris from his front yard in Missouri City.
An immigrant from Indonesia, Irwan moved to the United States in the 1980’s. He said his relatives outside the U.S. have joked with him about the continued lack of electricity in Houston.
“This is the country that can send people to the moon with all the power and everything,” he said. “And yet, we’re crippled by (a) simple windstorm.”
While his neighbor across the street has power, Irwan still does not. Instead, he and his family have been relying on generators and portable AC units to stay cool.
He recalled losing power for two weeks after Hurricane Ike and expressed frustration at what he sees as a lack of progress since then.
“We cannot just let this happen,” he said. “After Ike, we never learned a single thing.”
Jack Williams and Natalie Weber contributed to this report.