The grieving family of a young Texas boy who froze to death in their frigid trailer is now suing the power companies for $100 million.
11-year-old Christian Pavon Pineda was found lifeless under a pile of blankets in their freezing trailer, leaving his family devastated.
The seemingly healthy boy was pronounced dead from suspected hypothermia, an apparent consequence of the power crisis that left millions of Texans without heat and water amid the record-breaking winter storm.
The boy’s family is now suing the region’s power companies, electricity provider Entergy and Power grid operator ERCOT, holding the firms responsible for the devastating incident.
They are accusing the companies of gross negligence, saying the companies “failed to warn people of dangerous conditions and gave incomplete guidance to customers.”
ERCOT saw more than 4 million of their customers without power during the snowstorm.
Christian’s family said that he had no underlying health conditions and they suspect the 11-year-boy died due to the cold.
Police officers spent hours at their home and drew blood from the mother and stepfather for a drug test, a standard procedure when investigating deaths, the Chronicle reported.
“He was fine,” Piñeda told Univision. “I never imagined this. We believe it was the cold because he was fine. He had dinner, played and went to bed. He told me ‘I’m going to sleep.’”
The young boy’s stepfather checked on the children overnight and the kids seemed okay and breathing, the grieving mother said.
But around 2:30 pm the following day, Christian was found unresponsive under a pile of blankets.
Paramedics arrived moments later but it was already too late.
“I’m heartbroken. I had never imagined any of this was going to happen,” Christian’s aunt told ABC13.
At least 30 people have died in the state because of the devastating storm struck.
Among the deaths were a woman whose oxygen machine stopped working because of a power outage, a teen who fell into a frozen pond, and many people who had carbon monoxide poisoning after trying to use ovens and vehicles to heat their homes.
What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section and SHARE this story with your friends and family!
Replaced!