Video Shows Stark Contrast Between Texas And Arkansas At State Line During Winter Storm

MikeSeidel/Twitter

February 18, 2021, 8:13 am

Texas isn’t the only state being hit by winter storms—it isn’t even the only southern state hit by winter storms. But it’s the one suffering the most, and it’s because of how woefully unprepared for snow and power outages the state is.

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While the other 47 continental states all operate under two power grids, Texas has its own, with no federal oversight. This determination to stay separate from the rest of the country has proven catastrophic, as they are now unable to tap into other places for power as their own grid shuts down service for customers throughout the state.

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Add that to Texas’s reliance on natural gas—which can’t function properly in cold temperatures—and there are clearly structural failings at play here.

But in case that wasn’t already crystal clear, a video showing the state line between Texas and Arkansas is really driving home the reality that the problems happening in Texas have been brought on by its own failed leadership.

MikeSeidel/Twitter

The video was taken from the air in Texarkana, showing a thoroughly plowed street with functioning businesses on one side—the Arkansas side—and a dangerous snow-covered road with little-to-no access to commercial properties on the other—the Texas side.

One state has snow plows. The other doesn’t.

One side of this street is Texarkana, Arkansas.

The other side is Texarkana, Texas.

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

There is a leadership failure in Texas…pic.twitter.com/EJ2QtLudXK

— Rex Chapman (@RexChapman) February 17, 2021

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The footage has encouraged the ongoing debates over whether local government is responsible for preparing for a freak storm and what could have been done to prevent the disasters currently harming Texans.

That’s what I’ve been saying too. I live in Maryland on the east coast and I heard about this days before it hit. This is true negligence and a form of genocide IMO. I think criminal charges should be filed against the power company and Texas politicians.

— Incognito soybean (@soybeansandmash) February 17, 2021

I wonder what they call the FEMA aid they take every time something like this happens….

— Tromachick (@LempaLyn) February 17, 2021

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Imagine having at least a week to prepare for a weather system and not doing one damn thing about it. In Northeast, Towns/Counties contract out a lot of the work beforehand.

— KittyWampus (@_Kitty_Wampus_) February 17, 2021

You do realize there are legal issues involved when crossing state lines. TX has to ask, and the AR govt authorize it. If the drivers did it on their own initiative, I’ll guarantee you they’d be fired for creating a legal risk.

— JoJo (@JoGemelli) February 17, 2021

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Isn’t that a decision made by… leadership?

— Jacob Senory (@jsenory) February 17, 2021

No–this the part of Texas that’s not on ERCOT power. Oddly enough, the non-ERCOT parts of the state are fine as far as power goes, as they’re connected to out of state grids. Funny how that works, huh?

— The Magnificent Skinbag (@magskinbag) February 17, 2021

There are turbines here in Pa. It was 7 degrees last night not counting the wind chill. We installed the heating elements.
I wonder if Texas taxpayers paid for those units but the money went into their corrupt politician’s pockets

— Night Mists (@Nitemists) February 17, 2021

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With climate change shifting our weather patterns outside of what we’ve historically known, it’s entirely possible something like this could happen again. Whether Texas will be prepared the next time or not remains to be seen — but it’s obvious the current leadership isn’t cutting it.

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*First Published: February 18, 2021, 8:13 am