More than 13 million Texans face water crisis after brutal winter storm

Texas crisis escalates after paralyzed freezing winter storm Infrastructure in the state. Although electricity has largely been restored, more than 13 million people – nearly half of the state’s population – currently lack access to clean running water.

In many homes the tap is dry. Finding bottled water is almost impossible. Some have resorted to boiling snow. Houston, which is America’s fourth largest city, opened 11 sites Thursday to help donate water.

When the pipes burst in the home of Texas Representative Shawn Thierry, his world exploded. She and her 8-year-old daughter are in a hotel, but they won’t be able to live there for long.

“I mean it’s a nightmare, it’s everyone’s nightmare,” Thierry told CBS News. “Your home is your abode, this is where you go to find your peace and your work and now I am uprooted.”

Thierry is among millions in a new phase of misery. As the lights come back on, the horrors of the storm are revealed.

Water is everywhere – or nowhere, as many treatment plants have been taken offline and millions of people have been ordered to boil water. A line to enter a plumbing supply store ran for blocks. Even food has become difficult to find as some grocery shelves are empty.

Along the East Coast, snow and ice cause serious car crashes and bring down power lines, leaving tens of thousands of people in the dark. President Biden has declared a state of emergency in Oklahoma, where residents have experienced the longest streak of sub-zero temperatures on record.

This winter storm even created a political storm, Texas Senator Ted Cruz was spotted on a flight to Cancun as his constituents suffered from the cold. He returned to Houston under police escort after photos and videos of him were made public. CBS News has learned that it initially plans to return on Saturday.