Posted on 02/03/2011 8:14:16 AM PST by bestintxas
As brief power outages rolled across the state on Wednesday, certain places were intended to be exempt from a temporary loss of electricity. That included hospitals, nursing homes, fire stations, police stations, other emergency response facilities… and Cowboys Stadium?
When officials with Oncor said that the Arlington site of Sunday’s Super Bowl XLV would not be a part of the rolling outages, many residents became furious. But this was not entirely a choice made by the local utility company.
With thousands of reporters huddled in North Texas hotels and thousands of rabid football fans attending the NFL Experience at the Dallas Convention Center, and two football teams preparing to do battle on the field of Cowboys Stadium this Sunday, the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee had a big request to make. “It is vitally important we don’t have blackouts,” said committee vice president Tony Fay.
Fay asked the City of Dallas, the City of Fort Worth and the City of Arlington to ensure that rolling blackouts did not prevent planned events from happening at Super Bowl venues. That news really steamed up some homeowners who were left without power for hours. “We’re not prioritizing,” said frustrated Plano resident Allen Hooser. “Hospitals and the grocery store, which is out. But for a PR stunt, where you can go throw a football, you have power and heat.”
“Not because of any preferential treatment. Not because we’re trying to protect VIPs or celebrities,” Fay explained. “It is a public safety issue.” According to Fay, if there was to be a blackout at an NFL venue, then there would be no way to screen for security.
(Excerpt) Read more at dfw.cbslocal.com ...
Yep. Its a discussion going on right now, they paved roads to and from all super bowl activities but forgot to help the people in the cities. School has been closed for 3 days. Its insane. Dollar to donuts school will be closed tomorrow as well.
Where is there evidence of the hospitals being affected?
The story says they are exempt.
Why the heck doesn’t Texas have enough power to meet its needs? Is this some third world country? It gets cold every year. They should plan for this. I’d be embarrassed if I were a Texan.
These worthless welfare queens, who had the taxpayers pay for their stadium, should be at the bottom of the list of entities to get power.
Not if you think football is more important than life itself.
I thought you Texans took your football seriously?
because we even have politically correct douchetards in Austin that bought into the global warming scam and are shutting down oil, coal and natural gas plants for windmill farms of Pickens.
f'ing a#@holes. we need to repeal all the damage done by the legislation passed because of this scam.
They were supposed to be exempt.
http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2011/02/02/blackouts-anger-dallas-hospitals/
Politics. We opted for Wind turbines in West Texas, that do not move due to high wind!!!
I think I’ll pass on the Super Bowl this year. It’s gotten to the heights of ridiculous when an entertainment event is more important than hospitals. Tells us a lot about our society.
...but hey...maybe we all should run out and buy electric cars.
*groan*
Is my logic flawed?
I can believe that any hospital in this country does not have emergency power generators to keep everything running during outages. Where did you hear of people suffering in hospitals for lack of power?
And, if America wouldn’t have built its last nuclear power plant more than 30-years ago (very much UNLIKE France), this wouldn’t be a problem. We would have PLENTY of electricity, powered by a near-inexhaustible supply of fuel.
It’s not. Hospitals are exempt. Read the article.
It’s ridiculous to think that the NFL would ever think twice about returning to a city/state that can’t even provide the basics to the visitors who spend lots of money to attend the Super Bowl festivities.
Austin, btw has been for the most part immune from the power outages. It always hits San Antonio worst of all.
The pols aren’t stupid.
I really can’t understand why Texas is so prone to power outages. All they have to do is construct more power plants.
Hospitals are exempt from the rolling blackouts.
That being said, all hospitals have backup emergency power.
Bull.
I can guarantee that hospitals get first dibs on nat gas and electric power.
The fall of the Roman Empire began when all the people cared about were bread and circuses....
Do I detect a parallet?
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