Texas utility directors resign

Gov. Greg Abbott largely blames the board leaders of Texas’ power grid operator for catastrophic utility failures during last week’s winter storm. Historic snowfall and single-digit temperatures left millions throughout the Deep South without power and water for days. More than 80 people died, roughly half of them in Texas.

What do the board members have to say for themselves? The five directors who resigned all live outside of Texas. Four of them acknowledged “concerns about out-of-state board leadership” in a letter to grid members and the state’s Public Utility Commission, which oversees the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). During the crisis, ERCOT officials removed contact information for board members from its website, saying they had become the target of threats. Abbott accepted their resignations, calling ERCOT’s lack of preparedness and transparency unacceptable.

Dig deeper: Listen to the stories of WORLD staffers from Texas who weathered the storm.