Workers report feeling unsafe on the job.
In a media briefing on Sunday, Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia and law enforcement officials stated that violence against CenterPoint workers will only hinder restoration efforts.
“Please, God…stop harassing these people,” urged Ed Allen of IBEW Local 66. Allen advocates for field workers striving to restore power.
Nearly a week after Hurricane Beryl, hundreds of thousands of households are still waiting for utility trucks in their neighborhoods.
“The vast majority of people are handling this with grace and dignity, and I am grateful for that, but there’s a small group of folks that want to go out there and cause harm,” Allen said.
On Friday, Houston Police reported that a CenterPoint staging area at Barnett Stadium had to be dismantled due to an unverified threat against crews. On Saturday morning, a man was arrested for allegedly pointing a gun at a lineman working on Wilcrest Drive near Hayes.
“People are at the end of their ropes, but you would never take it out on a lineman,” said Julie Chipman, a southwest Houston resident. Chipman’s frustration is directed at CenterPoint’s executives, not the field crews. Entering her seventh day without power, she emphasized that this is unsustainable for many low-income families. “They are suffering. I am not suffering,” Chipman stated.
County officials have confirmed at least three heat-related deaths due to the outages. Chipman suggested that if CenterPoint’s online outage maps had been functional and the company more transparent about restoration times, people might not feel so desperate. “The communication issues have probably exacerbated everybody’s frustration,” she said.
During the media briefing, city leaders acknowledged that asking for patience in this heat is a significant request. “I get it, your frustrations. You’re hot and you’re not sleeping well,” Garcia said.
Nevertheless, leaders are urging people to remain calm. Allen emphasized that there will be a time to demand answers, but it is not now. When the time comes, he and others will seek explanations for the restoration delays. “I expect and want CenterPoint to be held accountable in the proper time and the proper place. Right now, we need to get the lights back on. We are down to less than 400,000 and we need these folks here,” Allen said.
Lt. Governor Dan Patrick told that the legislature will propose legislation to increase penalties for attacking line workers trying to restore power. If passed, legal punishments will be more severe.
