The February 2021 Texas Winter Storm and Texas Power Crisis

The February 2021 Texas Winter Storm and Texas Power Crisis
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The February 2021 Texas Winter Storm and Texas Power Crisis
What Happened During the Texas Winter Storm?
The North American winter storm that occurred in February is perhaps the worst storm to hit the state of Texas. According to “February 15-20, 2021 North American winter storm” (2021, para. 1), the storm occasioned through widespread snow, which reached a record high of nine inches, and ice storms across the state and the country. The storm, which started like any other winter storm witnessed in the past, quickly intensified, leading to extremely low temperatures of one digit and the massive loss of power.
The winter storm resulted in billions worth of damages through the destruction of various properties. The highest freezing temperatures documented in Texas in seventy-two years raised havoc on the Texas power equipment such as wind turbines, which had not been winterized froze (2021 Texas power crisis, 2021, para. 7). Natural gas power plants developed mechanical issues due to the high demand rendering them inoperable. The storm destroyed water pipes as they froze and burst, causing the city to lose over three hundred million gallons of water, subsequently, a water shortage. The catastrophic weather also affected the infrastructure by rendering fire hydrants, useless plumbing system in most buildings burst, damaging buildings and roads. These structural problems made life difficult for Texans while imposing damages estimated at $195.6 billion, making it the most pricey tragedy in the state (2021 Texas power crisis, 2021, para. 3).
Loss of lives also occurred due to the winter storm. According to Shawn Mulcahy (2021), the Department of State Health Services documented that one hundred and eleven deaths occurred in February due to the storm. The deaths, which affected both young and older people, such as an 11-year old boy freezing to death after temperatures at their home significantly dropped, and a man in his seventies who froze to death outside his home, was caused by hyperthermia, vehicle accidents, carbon monoxide poisoning, failure of medical appliances, lack of oxygen at homes, falls, and fire outbreaks.
The Texas Winter Storm Timeline and Human Casualties
According to the article, “2021 Texas power crisis, 2021, para 1” (2021, para. 1), the state of Texas experienced a devastating winter storm, organized in three storms that started on February 10 and lasted till February 20. The first storm that came about on February 10 to 11 blew through the northern Gulf coast bringing along significant amounts of rain, melted snow, and ice in many states, among them Texas. On February 13 to 17, a significant winter storm hit the United States and spread across several states such as Texas, bringing along an ice storm, massive snow, which rose to an all-time high, and power blackouts. The strength and severity of this storm caused Texas to issue winter weather alerts. From February 15 to 20, the storm, characterized by widespread snow all over the state and ice storms occasioned, becoming a massive weather bomb that raised havoc on Texas (February 15-20, 2021 North American winter storm, 2021, para. 3-4).
The storm brought on massive deaths of about 111 Texas residents. According to information by the Department of State Health Services, the deaths resulted from the winter storm (Mulcahy, 2021). The report documented that most of the deaths occurred due to hypothermia. The Texas power grid and gas stations failed to work, causing people to endure significantly low temperatures with no ways to keep warm. Motor vehicle accidents were another significant contributor to the deaths due to people getting stuck and crashing due to the over nine-inch snow that cost motorists their lives. Keeping cars running and utilizing generators to stay warm by some residents resulted in over three hundred cases of carbon monoxide poisoning, with some of the affected ended up dead. Fall and fires as people tried to navigate the high snow and to keep warm ended in fatalities. At the same time, people suffering from chronic illnesses and Covid-19 also died due to failure to access medical intervention in time (Mulcahy, 2021).
The Texas Power Grid
The Texas power grid is a unique power system in various ways. Unlike the other grid systems, the power system is operated only by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), formed in 1970. The system serves 95% of Texas residents, independen...