A Texas lawmaker failed when he confronted officials from the state’s energy provider, Ercot, about dozens of deaths during a power outage and a winter storm last week.
That came when Ercot officials appeared before Texas lawmakers Thursday to answer questions as part of a hearing on the firm’s role in the crisis.
That was when, as reported by MSNBC, a lawmaker broke down in tears when she confronted Ercot officials about the deaths, which are believed to exist in the tens – and that includes an 11-year-old boy, Cristian Pineda , who died. of hypothermia.
His family was among four million Texas who went without power during the worst winter weather for decades, while tens of thousands went without power for nearly a week, all of which were largely delivered by Ercot to Texas.
A lawmaker said during the trial before standing still: “Harris County alone has confirmed 15 fatal cases of hypothermia, including the death of an 11-year-old Cristian Pineda …”
“Who died in his sleep after playing in the snow and returning to his unheated house,” she burst into tears. “We want them and every Texan to make sure it never happens again.”
The tense first day of the trial took place when Ercot CEO Bill Magness told lawmakers he had no regrets about the firm’s role in the crisis, although he admitted that the state had a few minutes gone to lose all his stock.
“I feel a great sense of responsibility and remorse over the event, but I will continue to investigate – we continue to investigate – but I believe the operators in our team did everything they could,” he said. Mr. Magness told lawmakers.
A lawmaker then asked, “But would you not have changed your calling during those critical hours?”
Mr Magness replied: “I do not believe I would do that”.
According to theHouston ChronicleAbout 52,277 megawatts were lost during the Texas power grid crisis last week, causing problems. Ercot officials then had to rotate power outages to prevent the system from collapsing.
It comes exactly a decade after a 2011 winter storm forced 14,700 megawatts off-road in Texas, with a federal report warning afterward that the state must defend its power grid to prevent a future collapse in cold weather .
The state, whose power grid is independent, has not done so.