Power outages peaked at 2.7 million customers after the storm made landfall Monday, according to PowerOutage.us.nearly three days after Hurricane Beryl made landfall, stoking questions over how a city that is all too familiar with destructive weather was unable to better withstand a Category 1 storm.
“Maybe they thought it wasn't going to be so bad, but it's had a tremendous effect. They needed to be better prepared,” construction worker Carlos Rodriguez, 39, said as he gathered apples, oranges and ready-to-eat meal packs at a food distribution center. His family, with two daughters ages 3 and 7, was struggling, he said.
Power outages peaked at 2.7 million customers after the storm made landfall Monday, according to PowerOutage.us. CenterPoint would not ask third-party workers from other companies and municipalities to pre-position and “ride out” the storm “because that is not safe,” Tutunjian said. Instead they are asked to be as close as possible to respond after the storm moves through.
But council members pressed for answers about why CenterPoint, which has been the Houston area for about 100 years, hasn't been more aggressive in trimming trees during calm weather or putting more of its power lines underground. The company has been putting new lines underground in residential areas for decades, Tutunjian responded.