The Daily - Texas After the Storm

Episode Date: March 1, 2021

Even as the cold has lifted and the ice has melted in Texas, the true depth of the devastation left by the state’s winter storm can be difficult to see.Today, we look at the aftermath through the eyes of Iris Cantu, Suzanne Mitchell and Tumaini Criss — three women who, after the destruction of their homes, are reckoning with how they are going to move forward with their lives.Guest: Jack Healy, a Colorado-based national correspondent for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Even with power back on across most of the state and warmer weather forecast, millions of Texans whose health and finances were already battered by a year of Covid-19 now face a grinding recovery from the storm.Here’s an analysis of how Texas’s drive for energy independence set it up for disaster.As the freak winter storm raged, historically marginalized communities were among the first to face power outages.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

From The New York Times, I'm Michael Barbaro. This is The Daily. Today. As the cold lifted and the ice melted, the true depth of the devastation emerged in Texas. My colleague, Jack Healy, documented the experience of three women in Dallas. It's Monday, March 1st.

Jack, you went to Texas just a few days after this crippling winter storm and these mass power outages began in mid-February. So tell us about what you saw. Well, the first thing that I saw was a sort of patchwork quilt of light and darkness as the flight into Dallas broke through the clouds. About a third of the city was still without power. And as I drove around and talked to people, I was getting the sense that there was this real invisible crisis taking shape. You know, I've covered hurricanes in Texas, and I've covered other natural disasters over the years. And often you see people's houses that are flooded with water. You see houses that are burned down. A tornado destroys homes, that sort of thing. But the wounds that families had

suffered across the state were a lot less visible this time. And I really wanted to try to understand that damage. And so I started talking to people in working class parts of Dallas, and I met three women whose stories really exemplified the hidden hurt lingering across Texas. So tell me about the first of these women. Did you go by Iris or Irasema? My real name, Irasema. But I go by Iris all the time. Iris? Okay, whatever you prefer. Her name is Iris Cantu, and she lives on the south side of Dallas. And she was born in Mexico and came to the United States when she was 15. But when she was 18, her father died.

And it was a family tragedy that forced her and her sisters to go to work. And Iris is 45 and has been basically working nonstop. Right now she's a nanny, and every day she gets up at 6.30 in the morning and she drives across town to take care of the child of a wealthier couple in a nicer neighborhood. Have you liked living here? Yes.

I wanted to have a house. Like I say, there's nothing like go to your house, you know, like after a hard work day. Yeah. So I always think you want to have your own spot. Yeah. But you know, like me working for a lot of families and being in this humongous houses and reach people, you know, but you still want to go to your own spot. Yeah. So for Iris, buying a little single-story house on the south side of Dallas was the culmination of years of work and a dream. It cost her $82,000 at the time back in 2003 and it has meant everything to her. It seems like the floors are okay. No. Oh, no. And right inside the foyer in the living room there was a big hole in the ceiling where the ceiling had collapsed from the burst pipes.

Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh. Unbelievable. That's all of the insulation. Everything. Just the roof. Yeah. So I panic.

I mean, I panic because of her. What's her name? Samara. Hi, Samara. Yeah. So I panic. I mean, I panic because of her. What's her name? Samara. Hi, Samara. Hello. She lives there with her three-year-old daughter, Samara. And Iris sort of walked me around where else the water had started to infiltrate her home. Mm-hmm.

And right above the hot water heater in the garage, the ceiling was turning this kind of nasty sort of swamp sewer brown. And Iris was worried that as she continued to use the water to cook, to bathe, you know, to give Samara baths and stuff like that, that it was just going to exacerbate the problem. And that she was sort of living on borrowed time before, you know, another part of the house caved in. Is this house you're walking around feeling inhabitable? It sounds like she's still living there. She's still living there, and they were making it work. They had basically decided to live in the habitable half of the house, their bedrooms, and in a corner of the living room sort of far away from the gaping hole.

But Iris is concerned because her daughter Samara has asthma. And after the ceiling caved in, she was worried because she had started to notice some coughs and things like that. But the problem for Iris now is that money was already tight. And this damage, which her homeowner's insurance company says they're not going to cover, is going to probably end up costing between $6,000 and $7,000. And that's money that she and a lot of working folks around Texas don't have just lying around. Do you feel safe in the house right now? Not with that room in there, like, you see the... Uh-huh.

Some kind of scare. Mm-hmm. I don't know what to do. But we're trying to stay in that room, you know? Try to stay away from here. Yeah, yeah. It's really compounded an incredibly difficult year for Iris, which started when she got sick with coronavirus back in June.

She also had coronavirus? Yeah, yeah. Iris and one of her sisters live close to each other and her sister's family got it and then Iris got it. And she was laid up in bed for a couple weeks. She didn't have to go to the hospital. She's okay now. But it really walloped her and it also hurt her financially

because that was two weeks that she wasn't able to work or earn money. So first COVID and then this unbelievable storm. Yeah. And her home is now damaged and she doesn't have the money to make the repairs. Yeah. All right. Well, thank you so much. Muchas gracias. Que tenga buen dia. Gracias.

Gracias. Okay, so Jack, tell me about the second woman that you spend much. Muchas gracias. Que tenga buen día. Gracias. A ti y a usted. Okay, so Jack, tell me about the second woman that you spend time with in Dallas. Her name is Suzanne Mitchell. She's 37. She has three kids. And she had been a home health aide before the pandemic. But since COVID got so bad around Texas, she said she had decided to stop working

because she was too concerned about potential health consequences. Is this the first time you've been back since the... Oh, I took the chance to come here yesterday, try to give me and my kids some more clothes. I met her at the Lakeview Townhomes, which is a public housing complex run by the Dallas Housing Authority. public housing complex run by the Dallas Housing Authority. And when I went there, Suzanne and her mother had gone back to see what remained of their stuff after their kitchen ceiling opened up. The floor is still wet from when the pipes burst a couple days ago. Furniture has gotten wet. There is a TV sitting on the floor that just managed to escape getting totally destroyed by the water. And there is a gigantic gaping hole in the kitchen ceiling

from where everything poured out a couple days ago. And as I am sitting down on the couch with Suzanne and her mom to start talking about everything they've been through for the past couple days. The pipes start to gush again. Oh, my gosh. This house is re-flooding. It's re-flooding. As you were standing there,

talking to them about the first flood. Yeah. This is crazy. Do you want to talk upstairs? You think that's a little better? Water just starts splashing all over Suzanne and her mom. It's basically turning the place into a gigantic shower. Is there any damage up here?

Okay. And so to avoid getting soaked, we headed upstairs to the bedroom of Suzanne's daughter, Shantoria, which luckily had escaped flood damage. And that's where we did the rest of the interview. So what kind of mood are Suzanne and her mother in upstairs in this bedroom, given everything that has happened and is just now happening to them? Exhausted. A little defeated.

It had been a really hard year for this family. Suzanne's mom got COVID. You know, Suzanne had left her job because of her concerns about it. And her daughter, Shantoria, who's 15, whose bedroom we were all sitting in, you know, with school shirts pinned to the wall and cheerleading placards and everything on the walls of her room. Shantoria had had a really hard time over the past year as school went remote. And she spent three days a week sitting behind a computer

with classes. Well, it's been really hard on her because, like, all my kids are, like, straight A's and B's students. Yeah. Her grades have really failed since the pandemic been going on. Now she getting C's, D's, barely passing work. She got, you know, taken off the cheerleader team because her grades have dropped. And, you know, it had just really taken a toll on her emotionally and psychically. You know, it had just really taken a toll on her emotionally and psychically. And the kicker to all of this is that the laptop that Shantoria had been using to attend classes remotely got destroyed in the floods.

And Suzanne's big question was, how and when are we going to get this laptop replaced? And what's going to happen next with my daughter's schooling? Mm-hmm. Not to mention the water gushing from the ceiling of her home. Yeah, exactly. I mean, the family had been living at Suzanne's mom's apartment for the past couple of days, but they were sleeping on air mattresses and couches, you know, kind of putting kids at right angles with each other

to try to make more room. And it was really starting to get stressful. It was like a real breakdown. Like, I hadn't been able to eat, you know, a lot of ways since then. Like, it is, I don't know, it's really hard. And my main concern is my place for me and my kids. Like, the clothes and stuff, they can be replaceable, but my place, you know. Yeah.

And my kids, like, before school, you know, while school happened, you know, one of my daughters would go to school twice a week. And Jack, what were you thinking as you left Suzanne's apartment? I guess I was thinking about how precious home has become during this pandemic. You know, to so many of us, our houses are the places that are kind of our castles. They're our refuges against this disease that can find us anywhere. disease that can find us anywhere. And for these people who had spent so much money saving up to buy their houses or who had spent years on a wait list, you know, to get a nice townhome in a public complex to be put out of their homes not only dislocated them, but it also made them all the more vulnerable to this virus that is haunting us at every corner. And I think that just compounded the sense of loss and the sense of

dislocation and uncertainty of what comes next. It's like, at this moment, there is no help. It's like, I'm not getting nowhere. I'm still like in a standstill. So it's like really frustrating. I'm just ready to be home. We'll be right back. Is it okay if I record this? Yeah, go ahead. So, Jeff, tell me about the third woman that you spend time with in Dallas. My name is Tamani, Tamani Chris.

Will you spell it, Tamani? Uh-huh. Tango, uniform, mic, alpha, indigo. Well, her name is Tamani Chris. Were you in the military? No. How did you learn the language of that? I was in ROTC from grade school, middle school, and high school. Oh, okay.

And I didn't meet her at a home or flooded-out apartment. I met her in seat 52 of a charter bus that had been parked by a recreation center as an emergency warming shelter for families displaced by the outages and the storm. So she's living on a bus. Yeah, because remember, Michael, the power was so unreliable at the places we would normally use as shelters, like churches or rec centers or things like that, that in order to get to people in need in neighborhoods across Dallas, they just sent out buses. And so for a couple nights,

as many as 20 people or 30 people had been sleeping on this bus, and it was Tamani and her three boys. You know, they're boys, so they're in the game. They like basketball. They like video games. They are this incredibly close, tight-knit family. And for Tamani, her boys are everything. They are the reason that she works three jobs.

They are the reason that she is saving up every dollar she can to try to get enough money together for a down payment for a home for the four of them. And they were basically driven out of their house by the cold and then by a burst pipe. So that bust had become their home. So just like Iris and just like Suzanne, she experiences a frozen pipe that bursts and destroys her home.

Exactly. What happened was they had been dislocated by the cold like so many Texans. They had been driving around, trying to stay warm in their car. And as they were sitting there in their car, just outside their home, one of Tamani's sons noticed that the Wi-Fi signal from their house was back on. Yeah, like, he was on the computer, and I noticed our home Wi-Fi was on. So that made me think that the power was on. We jumped in that car so quick. I was like, come on! It was sort of like, you know, the skies skies parted and choirs sang for the family.

The Wi-Fi's on. I'm like, oh my God, the power's on. Get out, like, you know, get out. Like, grab the food. They were so excited because they figured out instantly the power must be on. And so they ran back inside and Tamani made a beeline towards the refrigerator where she had just spent $250 on a load of food. And she just started cooking. What were you going to make?

I was going to fry some fish, and then I had a big bowl of chicken noodle soup. I was going to heat it up to, like, super hot. And then, like, wrap it in foil. She started making fish and chicken soup and just figuring, I want to get as many of these groceries used and cooked and ready for my boys as possible. Yeah, yeah. Just kind of make whatever we could that would last us until the power came on. Yeah, yeah.

And then maybe 10, 15 minutes into us preparing the food, like that's when the leak started. And then the ceiling opened up. You know, we were grabbing blankets and buckets, and then I realized, oh, no, it's coming out the light jack. And then I realized, oh, no, it's coming from the little hole. So all of a sudden, it's like water leaking everywhere on everything.

And so they just grabbed what few possessions they could to try to salvage from this waterfall that's filling their home. And they left again. And I met them a couple nights later sitting on the bus. So they were able to take some items from the house and save them, it sounds like. But how much did they end up losing? I mean, a lot. But I bet, like, the couch is probably gone. Oh, yeah, the couch, all of the appliances in the kitchen.

As we were talking, she was sort of doing an inventory of what had survived and what hadn't, and most of their kitchen was gone. All my children's belongings, I mean, like my washer, my dryer, my deep freezer. Yeah, a lot of the furniture had been destroyed. And really, she didn't even know the full extent of the damage because it really was just so bad and so pervasive. Jack, what did she say about insurance or lack of insurance? What kind of financial situation is she now in?

Like hundreds of thousands of people across Texas, especially lower income people and renters, she does not have any. She had renter's insurance, but unfortunately she had let it lapse. And so now she is facing the prospect of having to replace all of this stuff on her own. She has applied for federal disaster aid, but that is the start of a very long process. And it's uncertain when an inspector is going to come out, when a check might be cut. Recovering from a disaster financially takes years. Right. And what about those boys? How are they handling the situation and especially now living on a charter bus with a bunch of strangers?

I mean, they have been pretty resilient, according to Tamani. I mean, she's been worried about the health of her two youngest sons because they have asthma. worried about the health of her two youngest sons because they have asthma. And she had a lot of COVID concerns about being on a pretty confined bus for a couple of days and nights. It's kind of scary. I think that's the scariest thing that I worry about is COVID. You know, everybody is focusing on the lack of resources and all this, but I'm like, COVID is still very around. Everyone was wearing masks, but, you know, they're kids. The masks slip off as they're playing or as they're sleeping. And also, you know, the ventilation, despite the fact that the air on the bus was kind of blowing at full blast, it's a confined space.

And there really was no social distancing when you're squeezed onto chairs and sort of sleeping sprawled across your older brother. So how does your time with this family come to an end? Well, so as they were kind of getting ready for another night there, another night of watching movies, and Tamani was getting ready for another night of trying to figure out how to go to sleep without the seatbelt digging into her back, a woman who had been helping out came up to the family with a little piece of good news.

We actually have secured a room for you guys for tonight. Are you serious? Don't play. Don't play with my emotions. For real? That they had found a room for you guys for tonight. Are you serious? I'm like, don't play. Don't play with my emotion. For real? That they had found a hotel for them. I am smelling so hard. And I'm smelling under here, too.

I didn't smash. I'm smelling. I'm trying not to cry. I feel like I hit the lotto. Oh, my God. Seriously? Have I lied to you so far? Three days.

Have I lied to you? No. It was the first time in days that they would have slept on an actual bed. I am literally so grateful. I am so grateful. So you'll be there tonight. When you guys come back tomorrow, we'll have some hot meals. And we'll tackle another day and just kind of figure it out.

We'll just keep day by day. We in this together, man. Jack, in conversations with people like Tamani, Iris, and Suzanne, who do they blame for the situation that they are now in? I mean, their stories are strikingly similar. Infrastructure that failed, pipes that burst, homes that were really badly damaged, if not destroyed. Who do they blame for that? You know, they have been frustrated with the pace of the response from the power companies in terms of getting the lights back on, from the utilities that plunge them into the dark and in the cold for so long. They're frustrated with the insurance company.

In Iris's case, that's denied her claim. For Tamani, I was really struck by how focused she was on just moving forward. I mean, the state right now is just going through this process of accountability, whether you want to call it blame finding or accountability in terms of asking the power companies and regulators and grid operators what went wrong and what they'll do to fix it. But these are enormous political questions. And for Iris and Suzanne and Tamani, there are more pressing matters at hand, which is where are my kids going to sleep? How are they going to get to school? How am I going to replace the groceries that got ruined? How am I going to move

forward with my life? And that's what they were most focused on. Jack, what you are describing in Texas is not just a winter storm. It's not just an energy crisis. It is those things, but it's not just those things. It is clearly a story of disparity, right? It's a kind of social x-ray that shows how fragile life is for these women. We spent the last year talking about how this pandemic has inflicted a disproportionate toll on lower-income people and on communities of color. And the same exact thing happened again when the lights went off across Texas. I was talking to one city councilman who, in describing the West Dallas neighborhood where Tamani was on that bus that night, he said,

these neighborhoods, which are predominantly Black and Hispanic, these neighborhoods are the first to lose power and they're the last to get it on. They're the hardest to get hit and the last to recover. And I think for these women, that's what they're really concerned about, whether that pattern is going to play out yet again and sort of drag them farther back and push their dreams even farther out across the horizon. Jack, thank you very much. We appreciate it.

Thank you so much, Michael. Oh, okay, okay. Okay. Do you, uh, I don't know, do you, what, does it feel kind of like a little bit unfair that some people, you know, get to go home or their, their powers on or that they didn't get flooded out? Uh, yeah, but life is unfair yeah what do you mean like stuff doesn't always go your way yeah let's try it how do you uh what do you think about that like how do you try to get over that or try to deal with that? I just think I'm positive. I got to be with my mom the other day.

Actually it was this morning. This experience made me grateful for everything I have. That's so cool. And what are you most grateful for? I'm most grateful for my mom because

that's why she made us. And what I was hearing from her stuff. for my mom because that's why she made us. අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි අපි Thank you. We'll be right back. Here's what else you need to know today. The FDA has granted emergency authorization to a third vaccine against COVID-19, made by Johnson & Johnson. Health officials say that the vaccine is a major breakthrough because unlike the previous two vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, it requires a single dose and can be

stored at normal refrigeration temperatures for months at a time. Johnson & Johnson says it will provide the U.S. with 100 million doses of the vaccine by the end of June. And two former aides have accused New York's Governor Andrew Andrew Cuomo, of sexual harassment. One, Lindsey Boylan, a former economic development official, alleges that between 2016 and 2018, Cuomo made inappropriate remarks to her, went out of his way to touch her arms, legs, and lower back, and gave her an unsolicited kiss on the lips, claims that Cuomo denies. A second woman, Charlotte Bennett, a health policy advisor, alleges that starting in 2020,

Cuomo asked her inappropriate questions about her sex life, whether she was monogamous in her relationships, and if she had ever had sex with older men. Cuomo has not denied asking Bennett personal questions and has called for an independent review into her claims. Today's episode was produced by Michael Simon Johnson, Diana Nguyen, and Sidney Harper. It was edited by Lisa Chow, Anita Bonagio, and Mark George, and engineered by Corey Schreppel. That's it for The Daily. I'm Michael Barbaro. See you tomorrow.