Harris County leaders condemn violence against utility workers during post-Beryl restoration efforts

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- There has been a call for civility from Harris County leaders as more electric utility workers report feeling unsafe on the job.

In a media briefing held by Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia on Sunday, law enforcement said violence against CenterPoint workers is only going to slow down restoration efforts.

"Please, God...stop harassing these people," Ed Allen with IBEW Local 66 said.

Allen's job is to advocate for the men and women working in the field to get the power back on.

Almost a week since Beryl hit, hundreds of thousands of households are waiting to see a utility truck in their neighborhood.

"The vast majority of people are handling this with grace and dignity, and I am grateful for that, but there's a small group of folks that want to go out there and cause harm," Allen said.

On Friday, Houston Police said a CenterPoint staging area at Barnett Stadium had to be dismantled due to an unverified threat against crews in the area.

On Saturday morning, a man was arrested after HPD said he allegedly pointed a gun at a lineman working Wilcrest Drive near Hayes.

READ RELATED: Suspect identified and charged after allegedly threatening electric utility worker at gunpoint

"People are at the end of their ropes, but you would never take it out on a linemen," Julie Chipman, who lives in southwest Houston, said.

Chipman said her anger lies with CenterPoint's top executives, not their field crews.

She's going into a seventh day without power, something she said isn't sustainable for many low-income families.

"They are suffering. I am not suffering," Chipman said.

County officials have already confirmed at least three deaths related to heat exposure because of the outages.

Chipman said that had CenterPoint's online outage maps been operational, and had the company been more transparent on restoration times, people might not feel so desperate.

"The communication issues have probably exacerbated everybody's frustration," Chipman said.

In today's media briefing, city leaders did not ignore that asking for patience in this heat is a significant request.

"I get it, your frustrations. You're hot and you're not sleeping well," Garcia said.

Still, leaders are asking people to stay calm. Allen said there would be a time to demand answers, but it is not right now.

When the time comes, he and others will demand an explanation for restoration delays.

"I expect and want CenterPoint to be held accountable in the proper time and the proper place right now we need to get the lights back on. We are down to less than 400,000 and we need these folks here," Allen said.

Lt. Governor Dan Patrick told ABC13 the legislature will propose legislation that increases the penalties for attacking line workers trying to restore power. If passed, legal punishments would be more severe.

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