Largest power disruption in history of Texas

Houston Chronicle:

Millions of residents endured a fourth night in darkness Monday as transmission companies continued to search for key equipment problems and crews focused on repairs that would provide electricity to the most customers at once.

The electricity outage that continues to darken most of the upper Texas Gulf Coast is the largest power disruption in the state's history, said Terry Hadley, spokesman for the Public Utility Commission of Texas.

CenterPoint Energy reported 1.6 million customers, or 69 percent of its customers, still were without power as of 8 p.m. Monday.

Hadley said Entergy, which serves much of the northern and eastern sections of the areas hit, still is assessing damage. Before dawn today, Entergy said 370,752 of 395,000 Texas customers, or 94 percent, still are without power.

Texas-New Mexico Power Co., which serves communities near the hard-hit coastline including Angleton and Texas City, said 65,000 of its customers, or 58 percent, are without electricity.

Before the storm hit, CenterPoint and Entergy touted their mutual assistance program, which allows them to tap into crews from Maryland to California, bringing thousands of linesmen and tree trimmers into the area.

As of Monday, 3,000 had arrived and not all had gone to work. Another 4,000 are expected to be working in the area by Wednesday.

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My part of Washington, Texas is served by the Bluebonnet Electrical Cooperative whose power plants and most of its lines are to the west out of the direct impact of the storm. "Downtown" Washington is served by Entergy and as of yesterday afternoon was still without power. Since the central telephone operations for Embarq's local service are across the street from the Post Office that explains why the phones were out. The phone lines are mostly underground so the lines were probably not an issue.

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