Texas grid was ‘minutes’ from failing, lawmaker says

Eric Levenson Madeline Holcombe
By Eric Levenson and Madeline Holcombe, CNN
Updated 8:28 PM EST, Wed February 17, 2021
Snow plows clear a lane of I-30, Monday, Feb. 15, 2021, in Dallas. The Nashville Predators and the Dallas Stars NHL hockey game Monday was postponed at the request of Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson due to a shortage of electricity in the region. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
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CNN  — 

A winter storm and lengthy cold snap have crippled power facilities in Texas and caused about 2.3 million outages as of Wednesday evening, leaving residents in the cold and dark for several days.

The lack of power to about a quarter of the state has created a widespread emergency, with families huddling in homes or cars without heat, burst water pipes, failing water systems and gasoline shortages.

Barbara Martinez said she had been burning firewood to try to heat her suburban Houston home, which had been without power from early Sunday until Tuesday.

Mark Majkrzak gives out water bottles to people in Austin, Texas, on Friday, February 19. Majkrzak, the founder of Rain Pure Mountain Spring Water, said he drove from Georgia to deliver the water.
Mark Majkrzak gives out water bottles to people in Austin, Texas, on Friday, February 19. Majkrzak, the founder of Rain Pure Mountain Spring Water, said he drove from Georgia to deliver the water.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Brendan Waldon repairs a utility pole in Odessa, Texas, on Thursday, February 18.
Brendan Waldon repairs a utility pole in Odessa, Texas, on Thursday, February 18.
Eli Hartman/Odessa American/AP
Deloris Sanchez and Mallissa Lee sit on a couch while taking shelter at a Gallery Furniture store that was serving as a warming station in Houston.
Deloris Sanchez and Mallissa Lee sit on a couch while taking shelter at a Gallery Furniture store that was serving as a warming station in Houston.
Go Nakamura/Getty Images
Vehicles are at a standstill Thursday on Interstate 35 in Killeen, Texas.
Vehicles are at a standstill Thursday on Interstate 35 in Killeen, Texas.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
City workers repair a busted water main in McComb, Mississippi, on Thursday.
City workers repair a busted water main in McComb, Mississippi, on Thursday.
Matt Williamson/The Enterprise-Journal via AP
Metropolitan Transit Authority workers shovel the stairs of a subway station in New York City on Thursday.
Metropolitan Transit Authority workers shovel the stairs of a subway station in New York City on Thursday.
Mark Kauzlarich/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Emanuale Small walks up to a bus station in Roanoke, Virginia, on Thursday. Small had to make it to a doctor's appointment, and he was told they would push the time back a little for him so he could still make it despite the icy conditions.
Emanuale Small walks up to a bus station in Roanoke, Virginia, on Thursday. Small had to make it to a doctor's appointment, and he was told they would push the time back a little for him so he could still make it despite the icy conditions.
Heather Rousseau/The Roanoke Times via AP