Extreme heat is gripping much of the nation this week, and it’s hitting Texas especially hard.
Intense heat in Texas following power outages from post-tropical cyclone Beryl
Post-tropical cyclone Beryl started as a Hurricane and struck southeastern Texas this week. Nearly 2 million homes are still without power following post-tropical cyclone Beryl.
“This was the most widespread damaging wind in the Houston Metro, likely since Hurricane Ike in 2008, with similar wind impacts in a lot of places,” AccuWeather chief meteorologist Jonathan Porter said.
The intense heat and humidity exacerbate the current situation. President Joe Biden granted a federal emergency disaster declaration to parts of Texas in Beryl’s wake, granting “75% reimbursement for debris cleanup for all 121 impacted Texas counties,” CNN reported.
“The greatest concern right now is power outages and extreme heat that is impacting Texans,” Biden said in a statement. “As you know, extreme heat kills more Americans than all the other natural disasters combined.”
How are Texans coping without power in the heat?
Communities are using sports event complexes and churches as cooling centers and as a means to provide water and aid.
“No WiFi, no power, and it’s hot outside. That’s dangerous for people. That’s really the big issue,” Resident Robin Taylor told The Associated Press. “People will die in this heat in their homes.”
CenterPoint Energy, the major utility company in the area, said power should come on for around 1 million people Wednesday afternoon but warned that “it will take days” to restore power throughout the region, according to ABC News.
