HOUSTON – When Henry Nguyen reopened his hair salon in southwest Houston, half a dozen neighbors came in – not to get their hair cut, but to wash their hair. They had not had running water at home for days.
The winter break that cut off power and water in much of America’s fourth largest city had Mr. friend to escape the relentless cold. In the three decades since his arrival from Vietnam, Mr. Nguyen only worried about heat and hurricanes in Houston.
“I wasn’t afraid of winter, but now I know,” said Mr. Nguyen. “The ice storm destroyed the entire state.”
The barber was one of many residents and business owners who showed up on Saturday to investigate the damage and return to their normal routine after the worst winter storm to hit the city in decades. About 4 million customers across Texas were without power during the worst storm last week. By Saturday, that number had dropped to less than 50,000, according to data from PowerOutage.US. Access to safe drinking water remained a critical issue for millions in the state, after freezing temperatures caused pipes to burst and cities, including Houston, were placed under boiling water messages.
Mr. Nguyen was cutting her hair again when cars drove on ice-cleared roads. The weather had warmed. Pedestrian traffic resurfaced along the main thoroughfare of Sharpstown, the diverse neighborhood where Hair By Henry opened 19 years ago.