You might remember that Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas on July 8, bringing heavy rain, strong wind and damaging tornadoes to a wide swatch of the central US and into the Midwest and New England. One of the hardest hit places was Texas, not a surprise because it was the first place the storm hit when it was still strong and powerful. Because of the strong winds and heavy rain, the power grid there took a major hit and many people lost electricity for an extended period of time. In fact, over two weeks later there were still many residents that did not have power or air conditioning. The unrelenting heat led to a number of deaths due to the very high temperatures that followed the passage of the storm.
You can read why Texas was especially hard hit by the hurricane damage to the power grid in MedPage Today and consider what you would do if you lost power for a week or more after a storm hit. A natural hazard does not have to become a disaster but if you are not prepared, the likelihood is much higher.
