Current:Home > MarketsTexas officials put the final death toll from last year's winter storm at 246 -EquityWise
Texas officials put the final death toll from last year's winter storm at 246
View
Date:2025-04-19 02:54:16
Nearly a year after a deadly winter storm left Texans freezing and in the dark, state officials say they know the final death toll.
The Texas Department of State Health Services adjusted the number of people who died from last February's storm to 246 people — up from July's tally of 210. The victims, who spanned 77 counties in Texas, ranged in age from less than one year old to 102.
Last February's massive winter storm spread ice, snow, and freezing temperatures throughout Texas. The state's weak utility grid couldn't stand up to the record-breaking cold and left millions without power for days.
Most of the storm's victims died from hypothermia, according to the state's report.
Dozens of people also died from accidents on roads, falls, and fires. The prolonged loss of power also led to some victims losing access to necessary medical equipment, such as oxygen tanks or dialysis machines. At least 19 people died from carbon monoxide poisoning as they tried to heat their homes or cars as the unrelenting cold continued.
The state's new report counts victims of the storm as those who were found after the storm passed and people who were injured during the storm, but died at a later date.
Since the deadly blackout, regulators in Texas have implemented changes forcing power companies to ramp up weatherization requirements at their facilities. So far, officials there are feeling confident that the "lights will stay on," according to Texas Public Radio.
The state's Public Utility Commission says it is enforcing those new regulations. Power plants had until December to file winter preparedness reports, though 13 of them did not do so.
veryGood! (9)
Related
- Why we love Bear Pond Books, a ski town bookstore with a French bulldog 'Staff Pup'
- Uber, Lyft leaving Minneapolis: City council passes measure forcing driver pay increase
- Former Massachusetts transit officer convicted of raping 2 women in 2012
- Boeing plane found to have missing panel after flight from California to southern Oregon
- Audit: California risked millions in homelessness funds due to poor anti-fraud protections
- Céline Dion Shares Rare Photo With Her 3 Sons Amid Health Battle
- State Medicaid offices target dead people’s homes to recoup their health care costs
- Totally into totality: Eclipse lovers will travel anywhere to chase shadows on April 8
- British golfer Charley Hull blames injury, not lack of cigarettes, for poor Olympic start
- 'Squid Game' actor O Yeong-Su, 79, convicted of sexual misconduct for 2017 incident: Reports
Ranking
- Organizers cancel Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna over fears of an attack
- Fasting at school? More Muslim students in the US are getting support during Ramadan
- A local Arizona elections chief who quit in a ballot counting dispute just got a top state job
- Teen Mom's Jade Cline Reveals Her and Husband Sean Austin’s Plan for Baby No. 2
- NCAA hands former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh a 4-year show cause order for recruiting violations
- A Gas Tanker Crashed in Birmingham and Spilled 2,100 Gallons Into Nearby Village Creek. Who Is Responsible?
- Uber, Lyft leaving Minneapolis: City council passes measure forcing driver pay increase
- After dangerous tornadoes in Ohio and Indiana, survivors salvage, reflect and prepare for recovery
Recommendation
Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
Nate Oats' extension with Alabama will make him one of college basketball's highest-paid coaches
America is getting green and giddy for its largest St. Patrick’s Day parades
What to know about judge’s ruling allowing Fani Willis to stay on Trump’s Georgia election case
JoJo Siwa reflects on Candace Cameron Bure feud: 'If I saw her, I would not say hi'
Cara Delevingne's Parents Reveal Cause of Her Devastating Los Angeles House Fire
David Breashears, mountaineer and filmmaker who co-produced Mount Everest documentary, dies at 68
Authorities are seeking a suspect now identified in a New Mexico state police officer’s killing