Winter Storm Uri — Four Years Later, Zero Jury Trials for 30,000 Victims of Historic Storm

When the electricity finally came back on following four catastrophic days of Winter Storm Uri that blasted Texas with subzero and single-digit temperatures and freezing precipitation in February 2021, the devastation was immense: At least 246 Texans were dead, thousands of others had suffered serious medical injuries, tens of thousands faced extensive damage to their homes and property, and thousands of businesses faced billions in economic losses.

An avalanche of lawsuits quickly descended upon Texas courthouses. Four retail power suppliers declared bankruptcy. The major energy companies — including Luminant, Oncor Electric Delivery, CenterPoint Energy, NRG Energy and Constellation Energy — pointed fingers at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas for bad decision-making, at natural gas companies for not delivering the fuel needed to make electricity and at each other for the massive power outages and the outrageously inflated electric prices being charged.