Jean-François Bonneté does not hide his exasperation. This Frenchman from Houston is one of the millions of Texans affected by the polar cold that rages in the southern United States. Caulked at home with his seven children, without water or electricity while the temperatures felt are around -6 ° C outside, he protects himself as best he can with blankets and anoraks.
Texans in dire straits
In recent days, his family has fallen back on “Cookies, fruits and certain vegetables”, which do not need to be reheated. Even finding a simple pack of water and gasoline is complicated. “There are queues of two hundred meters. And when we get to the pump, refueling takes thirty to forty minutes, he said. You wouldn’t believe Texas is the 11e world power and Houston the energy capital of the world! “
→ FACTS. Historic cold wave in the United States: more than 3.5 million homes without electricity
The French are not the only one to be angry. Several days after the arrival on Saturday February 13 of Storm Uri, many Texans are in dire straits. The cold has brought temperatures down to -20 ° C in parts of the state, and killed at least 30 people in the region.
More than 500,000 homes are still without electricity. On social networks, many families tell of burning fabrics or various objects to be able to warm up in homes that are not designed for such temperatures. Still others no longer have access to running water because of broken pipes or pressure problems. The municipality of Houston, 2 million inhabitants, and other large Texas cities now advise against drinking tap water directly and recommend boiling it when possible for fear of possible contamination.
“With this snowstorm, no one was ready”
“The administration of our building allows us to take water from the swimming pool to shower or to flush the toilet”, specifies Glenn Tchamdjou, a construction employee. He lives in Houston with his pregnant partner and his big worry is finding food when many stores are closed or not easily stocked due to the snow. “At least before Hurricane Harvey we had been warned, he said recalling the cyclone that hit Houston in 2017. We had had time to prepare ourselves, to store food. With this snowstorm, no one was ready. “
→ READ. The economic impact of Hurricane Harvey will be heavy
“We were presented with a fait accompli”, confirms Jean-François Bonneté. This entrepreneur, who is also a local elected official in the French community of Houston, lost his house during Storm Harvey. “We are back in the trauma of the hurricane. We find the same spirit of solidarity among the population, but also the same incompetence of the city of Houston and the state. “
A dilapidated infrastructure
Ercot (Electric Reliability Council of Texas), the electricity supplier which controls 90% of the Texas market, is implicated. Its dilapidated and unsuitable infrastructure did not withstand the shock of the excess energy demand created by the storm. A situation that is all the more difficult for the inhabitants to understand as Texas has significant energy resources.
For several days, the company has been practicing localized power cuts by rotation, so as to curb the amount of electricity supplied. She did not give a date for the final restoration of the service. “It’s abnormal that no one has thought about this type of scenarioexclaims Jean-François Bonneté. It feels like no lesson has been learned since Harvey. The energy authorities should have anticipated this situation. I’m already paying $ 700-800 per month for electricity, and I’m sure they’ll charge us more in the coming months! ” As of this Friday, the weather forecast is forecast for milder temperatures, above 0 ° C.
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