AGO.
AGO. IN
AGO. IN DALLAS, DEMOND FERNANDEZ+@,
BACK TO YOU IN STUDIO.
>>> MILLIONS OF C+@AN TEXANS WI
CONTINUE WRITING OUT THE STORM,
SOME HAVE GONE MORE THAN 30
HOURS W+@ITHOUT POWER.
>> WE HAVE HEARD FROM THOUSANDS
OF YOU TELLING US THIS YEAR,
FRUSTRATED, ANGRY, IN DIRE NEED
OF SOM+@EPLACE WARM.
WE ARE JOINED LIFE BY GOVERNOR
+@
WE ARE JOINED LIFE BY GOVERNOR GREG ABBOTT, AND THE CHIEF OF
THE TEXAS DIVISION OF EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT, GOVERNOR, TEXANS
ARE DEMANDING SOMEONE BE HELD
ACCOUNTABLE, WHO +@IS TO BLAME?
>> THERE ARE SEVERAL PEOPLE WHO
HAVE REALLY FALLEN SHORT, HERE,
I'LL TELL YOU +@WHAT THE
CHALLENGES ARE AND WHAT HAS
HAPPENED.
HAPPENED.
HAPPENED. THE COMPANIES THAT +@GENERATE T
POWER, THEIR OPERATIONS HAVE
FROZEN UP OR HAVE TRIP WIRED
AND ARE NONOPERATIONAL, THAT IS
THE LEAD REASON WHY THERE IS A
SHORTAGE OF POWER, FOR THE
PEOPLE WHO ARE LACKING POWER
RIGHT NOW, THIS IS AN
ADDITIONAL REASON, CAUSING A
LACK OF NATURAL GAS, ARRIVING
TO POWER GENERATIONS ACROSS THE
STATE, THAT'S BECAUSE +@THE
ABILITY TO BOTH MANUFACTURE AND
SHIP AND TRANSPORT NATURA+@L GA
HAS BEEN FROZEN ALSO.
SO, THOSE ARE PROBLEMS, BUT, WE
MUST ALSO POINT OUT THAT THE
WAY THAT ERCOT HAS HANDLED THIS
ENTIRE S+@ITUATION HAS BEEN
COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE, THAT'S
EXACTLY WHY, TODAY I ISSUED AN
EXECUTIVE ORDER CALLING FOR AN
EMERGENCY TEXAS LEGISLATURE +@T
BEGIN IMMED+@IATELY TO
INVESTIGATE WHAT IS GOING ON AT
ERCOT, WE NEED GREATER
TRANSPARENCY, GREATER
TRANSPARENCY, GREATER EXPLANATIONS, THE PUBLIC HAS A
RIGHT TO KNOW WHAT ERCOT IS
DOING, HOW THEY ARE MAKING
THEIR DECISIONS, WH+@Y THEY'RE
MAKING THEIR DECISIONS THE WAY
THEY ARE, AND THE WAY TO SPEED
UP THEIR DECISION-MAKING
PROCESS BECAUSE IT IS
COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE FOR
PEOPLE TO GO MORE THAN A DAY
WITHOUT POWER, THEY SHOULD HAVE
ROLLING OPERATIONS SO THAT SOME
PEOPLE WILL HAV+@E POWER, AT
LEAST FOR SEVERAL HOURS OR HALF
A DAY DURING THE DAY TO WARM
THEIR HOMES, TO TAKE A SHOWER,
TO CHARGE THE PHONES, WHATEVER
THE CASE MAY BE.
THE WAY THAT ERCOT HAS OPERATED
IS COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE, AND
WE ARE GOING TO DRILL DOWN INTO
IT THIS SESSION, AND MAKE SURE
THAT WE HAVE CHANGES +@IN A WAY
THAT ERCOT IS STRUCTURED AND
OPERATES.
OPERATES.
OPERATES. >> GOVERNOR, YOU MENTIONED THE
NATURAL GAS THAT TRIPPED OFF-
LINE TODAY POWERED BY THEM.
COULD WE HAVE OUTA+@GES OF
NATURAL GAS NEXT?
>> I WAS ON THE PHONE, RIGHT
BEFORE GETTING ON WITH YO+@U,
TRYING TO FIND OUT THE ANSWER
TO THAT QUES+@TION.+@
MY TEAM HAS BEEN TALKING TO ALL
+@
MY TEAM HAS BEEN TALKING TO ALL +@THE NATURAL GAS PRODUCERS AND
SUPPLIERS IN THE STATE OF
TEXAS, ALL AFTERNOON TO
ACCELERATE THE PROCESS OF THEIR
ABILITY TO GET IT, AND THEIR
ANSWER IS, IT IS JUST FROZEN
RIGHT NOW.
RIGHT NOW. IT'S FROZEN IN THE PIPELINE,
IT'S FROZEN AT THE RIG, FROZEN
AT THE TRANSMISS+@ION LINE.
THE NATURAL GAS PROVIDERS ARE
INCAPABLE OF BEING ABLE TO COME
UP WITH A GAS THAT FEES INTO
THE GENERATORS THAT GENER+@ATES
THE POWER THAT WILL SEND POWER
TO PEOPLE'S RESIDENCES IN THE
DALLAS AREA.
DALLAS AREA. >> UNDERSTOOD.
>> UNDERSTOOD. PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW, WHEN IS MY
POWER COMING BACK ON?
WHEN IS THE POWER COMING BACK
ON?
ON?
ON? >>
ON? >> SO, THAT IS PRECISELY WHAT I
WAS TALKING ABOUT EARLIER.
THAT IS THE QUESTION THAT I+@ A
ASKING, AND THE PUBLIC NEEDS AN
ANSWER TO FROM ERCOT.
ERCOT IS THE ORGANIZATION THAT
IS OPERATING THE TRANSMISSION
ACROSS THE ENTIRE STATE OF
TEXAS, ERCOT HAS NOT BEEN
TRANSPARENT ABOUT THIS.
WE, ALL OF US, NEED ANSWERS AND
TRANSPARENCY FROM ERCOT TO MAKE
SURE PEOPLE GET THE ANSWERS
THEY NEED BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY,
GET THE POWER THEY NEED.
THAT'S WHAT P+@EOPLE WANT MORE
THAN ANSWERS.
THAN ANSWERS. >> GOVERNOR, I WANT TO GET ONE
LAST QUESTION IN BEFORE WE HAVE
TO GO, ARE YOU GOING TO PUSH
LAWMAKERS TO PUNISH UTILITIES
+@
LAWMAKERS TO PUNISH UTILITIES THAT FAILED TO WINTERIZE THEIR
+@
+@ EQUIPMENT?
EQUIPMENT? OR INCENTIVIZE THOSE WHO DO?
>> WE WILL LOOK AT ALL
STRATEGIES, WHETHER IT'S PUNISH
OR INCENTIVIZE.+@
OR INCENTIVIZE.+@ THE BOTTOM LINE IS TO GET
RESULTS.
RESULTS.
RESULTS. YOU WOULD'VE EXPECTED, WE
EXPECTED, THE UTILITIES WOULD
HAVE WINTERIZED THEIR EQUIPMENT
FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS,
ALTHOUGH WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND
THAT LAST TIME SOMETHING LIKE
+@
THAT LAST TIME SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPENED WAS MORE THAN 100
YEARS AGO.
YEARS AGO. BUT THAT WE WILL BE CALLING ALL
OF THE UTILITIES BEFORE THE
STATE LEGISLATURE TO GET
ANSWERS FROM THEM, WHY THEIR
+@
ANSWERS FROM THEM, WHY THEIR EQUIPMENT WAS NOT WINTERIZED TO
PROTECT AGAINST THIS TYPE OF
SITUATION.
SITUATION. >> GOVERNOR WE HAVE 10 SECONDS
LEFT+@.
LEFT+@.
LEFT+@. WILL TE+@XANS +@BE FORCED TO PA
FOR CRAZY HIGH ELECTRIC BILLS,
WHO PAYS FOR THE BUSTED PIPES
AND DAMAGE IN OUR HOMES?
>> THAT IS AN ISSUE THA+@T THE
STATE LEGISLATURE WILL BE
LOOKING AT.
LOOKING AT. I WAS ON A PHONE CALL WITH THE
PRESIDENT MOMENTS AGO, WHERE WE
TALKED TO HIM ABOUT THAT ISSUE.
ABOUT THE INCREASING COST OF
GAS PRICES, AS WELL AS DEALING
WITH THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE
HOMES, AND THAT WILL BE
SOMETHING WE WILL BE TALKING TO
THEM ABOUT, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE
INSURANCE IT WILL +@BE INSURANC
THAT WILL PAY FOR DAMAGE TO THE
HOMES.
HOMES.
HOMES. THOSE WITHOUT INSURANCE THERE
IS THE POSSIBILITY TO SEEK A
FEMA CLAIM FOR IT.
THOSE WILL BE DETAILS WE WILL
WORK WITH HOMEOWNERS ON.
>> OUR THANKS TO YOU, GOVERNOR
GREG ABBOTT, WE