When a record winter storm hit the country on Monday, millions of people in Texas found themselves shaking in the dark.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which manages the power grid of 26 million customers, called for interruptions to conserve energy, as the arctic climate froze wind turbines, put several plants off the air and increased demand for domestic heating systems.
Interruptions affecting more than 2 million people were initially expected to be brief, lasting 15 to 20 minutes, but many Texans reported that they lost energy for hours.
“The blackout continued, and as the night progressed, temperatures started to drop,” said Esteban Ramirez, 19, a university student from Del Rio, west of San Antonio, on the Mexican border. He curled up with his mother and grandparents on a couch to warm up after they lost power at 2:30 am
At some point, he said, the outside temperature was 6 degrees.
“It was scary,” he said. It lacked energy, except for a few short spurts during most of the day. His pipes froze, interrupting the house’s water supply, and the poor light made it difficult for his grandfather to get the medication, he said.
“It was the first time that I experienced something like this,” he said. “I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to survive the night.”
When the lights and heaters went out across the state, some Texans rushed to wrap pipes to prevent them from exploding. Others have checked vulnerable friends and relatives to ensure their safety, as temperatures have dropped to levels rarely seen in that part of the country.
In the Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas, Aline McKenzie, 59, a science writer at UT-Southwestern Medical Center, picked up more straw to keep her six chickens warm in the chicken coop while she, his wife and three cats stood in front of a fireplace .
She brought a camp stove to her home to cook, she said. “My survival instincts are working,” she said.
In Austin, Adria Johnson ate tortilla chips and semi-defrosted ravioli from her freezer after she lost energy – and all the ability to heat food – at 2 am
In the late afternoon, as she curled up under three blankets in her apartment with her Chihuahua, Bluebell, the energy had not yet returned.
“It’s terribly cold,” she said, adding that icy roads make it dangerous to take refuge with friends. “I thought I could take it, but it’s very, very cold.”
Johnson was watching reports that warned that his energy was unlikely to return until Tuesday and was angry that the state’s energy suppliers were no longer prepared.
“After this is over, I expect a reckoning on why we were unable to predict this would happen,” she said. “Every summer, we deal with several days of more than 100 consecutive temps. Who would have thought that we wouldn’t be able to cope with a few days of freezing temperatures?”