STORES
STORES TO
STORES TO DRAW BACK ON THE POWER THAT THEY USE.
IT IS A GOOD IDEA FOR ANYBODY
WHO IS ABLE TO DO THAT.
CONSERVE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE
AND HELP EVERYONE OUT.
>> WE APPRECIATE THE
RESTAURANTS THAT ARE OPEN.
WE HAVE A GREAT LIST ON
WWW.WFAA.COM.
WWW.WFAA.COM. >>> ANOTHER DAY HAVE POWER
OUTAGES, CONTROLLED POWER
OUTAGES, WE HAVE HEARD THEM
CALLED A LOT OF THINGS.
MANY TEXANS ARE ASKING, HOW DID
THIS HAPPEN?
THIS HAPPEN? JOINING US IS THE GRID EXPERT,
GERALD TURNER.
GERALD TURNER. THANK YOU FOR BEING WITH US
THIS MORNING.
THIS MORNING. I WANT TO GIVE FOLKS SOME
BACKGROUND.
BACKGROUND. YOU ARE THE CHIEF DESIGNER AND
ENGINEER OF TWO DIFFERENT U.S.
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS.
YOU HAVE DESIGNED AND DEVELOPED
POWER GRID SYSTEMS AND YOU WERE
CALLED INTO REDESIGN PUERTO
RICO'S POWER STRUCTURE AFTER
HURRICANE MARIA.
HURRICANE MARIA. PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW HOW THIS
HAPPENED?
HAPPENED?
HAPPENED? THERE IS A BIG BLAME GAME GOING
ON RIGHT NOW.
>> I HAVE DUG DEEPER SINCE OUR
LAST TIME TOGETHER AND I
DISCOVERED THAT SOME OF THE
MAINTENANCE AND THE UP KEEP, OF
THE BASIC GRADE AND THE BASIC
COMPONENTS, LIKE THE POWER
GENERATION AND SO FORTH HAD NOT
BEEN DONE AS WHAT WAS PROMISED
IN 2011.
IN 2011.
IN 2011. YOU MAY RECALL THAT THAT WAS A
SUPER BOWL COLD BLAST, IF YOU
WILL -- AT THAT TIME.
10 YEARS AGO THERE WERE
PROMISES MADE TO IMPROVE THE
EQUIPMENT, AND MAINTAIN AND
MONITOR IT A LITTLE BIT BETTER.
I AM GUESSING THAT QUITE
FRANKLY, GIVEN THE CAPACITY
THAT HAS DECLINED, I'M GUESSING
THAT IS WHAT LED TO THE
DISASTER ITSELF.
DISASTER ITSELF. NOT THE WEATHER, BUT THE
IMPACT.
IMPACT.
IMPACT. >> PROMISES MADE, BUT PROMISES
NOT KEPT.
NOT KEPT.
NOT KEPT. HOW DO WE GET THEM TO BE KEPT
AT THIS POINT?
>> WELL, IT HAS LANDED ON THE
GOVERNOR'S DESK.
GOVERNOR'S DESK. THERE IS ALSO SOME DIALOGUE,
WITH GOVERNOR ABBOTT. THERE'S
SOME ADMINISTRATIVE DECISION-
MAKING CHANGE THAT WILL NEED TO
HAPPEN, IN ORDER TO KEEP PEOPLE
ACCOUNTABLE AND MAKE SURE THAT
PEOPLE DO WHAT IS NECESSARY.
IT
IT
IT >>
IT >> YOU
IT >> YOU MENTION TALKING ABOUT
UPGRADING, WEATHERIZATION,
UPGRADING, WEATHERIZATION, MOVING FORWARD, WHAT DO YOU
THINK IT IS GOING TO TAKE TO
MAKE SURE THAT THIS DOESN'T
HAPPEN AGAIN AND GET OUT OF THE
SITUATION AS QUICKLY AS
POSSIBLE?
POSSIBLE?
POSSIBLE? >> AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE?
THAT WILL PROBABLY BE A COUPLE
DAYS LONGER.
DAYS LONGER. WE HAVE ANOTHER PHASE OF THE
STORM COMING IN, TODAY,
BASICALLY.
BASICALLY. AS FAR AS PUTTING EVERYTHING
BACK INTO CONDITIONS, YOU MAY
RECALL THAT THERE USED TO BE A
SAYING, BACK IN THE DAY, THAT
YOU CAN PAY ME NOW OR PAY ME
LATER.
LATER.
LATER. THAT WAS A FRAM OIL FILTER
COMMERCIAL, YOU CAN INVEST IN
WHAT IS NECESSARY NOW IN TERMS
OF INFRASTRUCTURE, OR SPEND 10
TIMES AS MUCH CLEANING THINGS
UP, LIKE RIGHT NOW FOR EXAMPLE.
IT IS EXORBITANT, IF YOU WILL.
IT WILL TAKE A LOT OF
CONSCIENTIOUS ACTIVITY AND SEND
MAJOR ACCOUNTABILITY, I WOULD
SAY, ON BEHALF OF ERCOT AND ANY
OF THE GOVERNANCE AGENCIES THAT
ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR
MAINTAINING THE SYSTEM.
>> WE HAVE HEARD A LOT ABOUT
COST, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN
COMPARE THIS TO WHAT HAPPENED
IN PUERTO RICO, BUT WHAT KIND
OF A COST ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?
YOU SAID SIGNIFICANT?
>> I DO NOT KNOW EVERYTHING
THAT IS BROKEN, SO, LET ME LEAD
WITH THAT.
WITH THAT. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT EVERYTHING
THAT NEEDS TO BE REPAIRED OR
REPLACED.
REPLACED.
REPLACED. IT COULD BE VERY SIZABLE.
IF THE WIND FARMS ARE DAMAGED,
FOR EXAMPLE, THAT IS PRETTY
STEEP. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY
COST NOWADAYS, BUT THEY ARE
VERY EXPENSIVE.
VERY EXPENSIVE. ALSO, MAKING THEM PROVEMENT'S
TO THE BASIC GRADE IT SELF, AND
UPGRADING GENERATORS AND THEIR
CAPACITY SYSTEMS THAT WOULD
ALLOW THE POWER GRID TO BE MORE
RELIABLE FOR THE MOST PART.
I CANNOT GIVE YOU A NUMBER,
BUT, TYPICALLY -- IF YOU DON'T
PRACTICE DISASTER AVOIDANCE,
YOU CAN EXPECT THAT AFTER THE
FACT THAT DISASTER RECOVERY
WOULD BE 4-5 TIMES THE COST.
>> WE HAVE HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE
THAT ARE CALLING ERCOT, IS
THERE ANYONE ELSE THAT FOLKS AT
HOME NEED TO CALL TO MAKE SURE
THAT THEIR VOICES ARE HEARD ,
IN REGARDS TO MAKING SURE THAT
THIS STUFF HAPPENS?
>> I THINK THE BUCK STOPS ON THE
GOVERNOR'S DESK.
GOVERNOR'S DESK. THERE MAY BE OTHER FOLKS -- I
DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE
COUNCILMAN, AND THE PEOPLE THAT
ARE IN THE AREAS THAT HAVE
CLOUT, THEY HAVE IMPACT TO GET
INTO THE GOVERNOR'S HERE, BUT
THE GOVERNOR ACTUALLY REGULATES
AND MAINTAINS THE CONTROL OVER
THE PUBLIC UTILITIES
COMMISSION.
COMMISSION. WITH REGARD TO GENERATING
PROVIDERS, IF YOU WILL, THEY
PROVIDE THE POWER DIRECTLY TO
CITIZENS IN THIS AREA.
I WOULD SAY -- I DON'T WANT TO
GET POLITICAL, BUT, IT SEEMS
LIKE IT IS GOING TO REQUIRE
THIS TYPE OF INTERVENTION, IN
ORDER TO GET THE ATTENTION
NEEDED.
NEEDED.
NEEDED. >> YOU HAVE THE EXPERTISE, WHEN
YOU SEE THIS GOING ON,
ESPECIALLY WITH YOUR EXPERIENCE
AND PUERTO RICO, IS IT
SURPRISING TO YOU?
WE ARE TALKING ABOUT HOUSTON
HAVING 41 PERCENT OF PEOPLE
WITHOUT POWER RIGHT NOW.
>> NONE OF THIS IS SURPRISING.
I HAVE SEEN DISASTERS OCCUR
LIKE THIS, WHERE THE
MAINTENANCE WAS NOT KEPT UP OR
NOT DONE IN ORDER TO ENSURE THE
SAFETY OF THE PEOPLE THAT HAD A
VESTED INTEREST.
VESTED INTEREST. I HAVE SEEN THE CHALLENGES, AND
THE COLUMBIA DISASTERS.
THINGS THAT COULD HAVE BEEN
DONE BEFORE THE FLIGHTS.
I HAVE SEEN THIS HAPPEN WITH
PUERTO RICO WHERE THINGS COULD
HAVE BEEN DONE IN ADVANCE, LIKE
IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF THE
LIVING GRID.
LIVING GRID. THEY HAD A POWER SYSTEM ON THE
SOUTHERN COAST, IF YOU WILL.
A PLACE CALLED PENSIE, AND THE
POWER PLANT BURNED DOWN A FEW
TIMES.
TIMES.
TIMES. IT
TIMES. IT LEFT PUERTO RICO BLACKED OUT.
A REAL BLACKOUT, FOR THE MOST
PART.
PART.
PART. I
PART. I HAVE SEEN DISASTERS OCCUR
BECAUSE NEGLIGENCE OR PEOPLE
PRESUMING -- LAS VEGAS STYLE,
THAT THERE WILL NOT BE ANY
PROBLEMS.
PROBLEMS.
PROBLEMS. THEN, WHEN A PROBLEM OCCURS,
THERE