More than 800,000 customers in the Houston metro area remain without power as a severe heat wave continues to grip the region. CenterPoint Energy, the primary electric utility provider, has indicated that over 400,000 homes and businesses may not have electricity restored until early next week, leaving many residents frustrated and struggling to cope with the oppressive heat.

Residents have expressed their anger and confusion over the prolonged outages, questioning how it could take nearly a week to restore power. Many are facing challenges in accessing food and clean drinking water, with some seeking refuge from the heat in makeshift clinics set up at the NRG Park Sports Complex due to overcrowded hospitals.

CenterPoint claims to have restored power to over 1.4 million customers faster than other utilities during similar storms, and has pledged to restore power to 80% of those affected by Sunday night. However, the company is facing significant backlash from residents, businesses, and lawmakers, including Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, who is currently acting as governor. Patrick has vowed to hold CenterPoint accountable for its lack of preparedness, urging the company to prioritize restoring power.

The recent outages follow a series of storms that have impacted the Houston area, raising concerns about the resilience of Texas's energy grid. Michael Weber, a professor of energy resources at the University of Texas at Austin, highlighted that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of weather events, necessitating a modernization of the grid. CenterPoint is proposing a $2 billion resiliency plan aimed at strengthening the grid, which includes measures such as reinforcing transmission poles and relocating power lines underground.

Weber emphasized the importance of investing in grid improvements to prevent future outages and save lives, despite the high upfront costs. As thunderstorms are expected this weekend, which could further delay repairs, temperatures are projected to rise back into the nineties starting Sunday, intensifying the urgency for power restoration efforts.