Hundreds of thousands of Texans are still without power amid scorching heat one week after Hurricane Beryl hit areas near the Gulf of Mexico, killing at least 11 in the U.S. Berly is the earliest Category 5 storm to develop in the Atlantic during hurricane season, making landfall in the Windward Islands on July 1.

The storm reached Matagorda, Texas as a Category 1 hurricane last Monday. Cities like Houston are still trying to recover as nearly 300,000 residents remain without power.

CenterPoint Energy, the area’s main energy provider, said it has restored electricity to about 2 million homes and expects near-complete restoration by the end of Wednesday. Texas. Gov. Greg Abbott called for an independent investigation and, in a Sunday press conference, demanded that the utility company make improvements to its hurricane preparedness plan by the end of the month.

“Houston is in crisis. These are monstrous, unacceptable conditions,” the nonprofit organization CrowdSource Rescue, which was created in response to Hurricane Harvey in 2017, said in a Facebook post. “There must be real accountability when this is over. In the meantime, we’ll keep at it, as we try to deliver generators, food and water to senior citizens abandoned in the 100° days and terribly dark nights.”

The aftermath of a hurricane can oftentimes be the deadliest because of failing infrastructure and lack of support or emergency services. Power failures after Hurricane Ida in 2021 directly caused the death of at least 10 people in New Orleans.

Advocates said Hurricane Beryl “serves as a stark reminder of the realities of climate change,” underscoring how cities are unprepared to deal with the increasing risks of natural disasters. With summer and hurricane season just starting, Texans are worried their infrastructure may not be able to withstand the forces of nature

In winter 2021, amid record-breaking low temperatures, the Texas power grid failed, leaving millions without electricity. At least 246 people were killed, though estimated numbers are much higher.

Marginalized communities tend to struggle the most to meet their basic needs in the aftermath of a natural disaster. Warnings after Beryl included flooding, 70-mile-per-hour winds, tornadoes and high temperatures for parts of the South.

Hurricanes pose the greatest threat of death and destruction, but tropical storms can be just as deadly, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). Beryl caused widespread flooding in Houston and Southeast Texas and left millions of residents without electricity. It’s the tenth hurricane to strike Texas in recorded history.

AccuWeather estimates the destruction and economic loss caused by Hurricane Beryl in the U.S. totals about $30 billion – including damage to homes, businesses, infrastructure and roadways. Hurricane Harvey, which occurred in the same area seven years ago, caused $230 billion in damage.

Charity groups like the Salvation Army have provided Texans with free meals, respite from the heat and prayer services.

“The fact that so many people have been without power makes this a particularly challenging situation,” said Alvin Migues, the emergency disaster services director for the Salvation Army in Texas, in a statement. “Not only are they unable to cook food, but they also can’t keep anything refrigerated and have lost everything in their freezers. Add to that frustration the extreme heat and humidity and you have very difficult circumstances.”