As Texas continues to recover from the recent Hurricane Beryl, reports of carbon monoxide poisoning have surged, striking a chord reminiscent of the 2021 winter storm crisis. Following the hurricane that hit the state on July 8, approximately 400 Texans were treated for CO poisoning, and two fatalities were reported in Harris County, according to The Texas Tribune. The spike in CO poisoning incidents marks the highest since the infamous winter storm over two years ago.

Tragedy was narrowly avoided for Debbie Wells, 72, her husband, and their daughter who were among those affected. The family used a portable generator to power their air conditioner amid blistering heat, the same generator they had depended on without issue during the 2021 freeze. This time, however, they moved it closer to their home in Cleveland, Texas, under the porch to protect it from the hurricane's rain, an act that nearly cost them their lives. "I think it's important for everybody to understand that we're not stupid. We did a stupid thing. We got careless, and it only takes one time," Wells recounted in her interview with The Texas Tribune.

Despite the known dangers of carbon monoxide, Texas has no statewide law requiring CO detectors in all homes, leaving a substantial portion of the population unprotected. The updated building codes enacted in 2022 demand the installation of detectors in new and certain renovated homes but give cities the option to opt out. Dr. Joseph Nevarez of Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston emphasized the inadequacy of the current legislation, stating, "If safety belts save lives but you said only this portion of the population needs them, that doesn’t make sense. So again, why are we leaving so many Texans at risk for something that’s relatively inexpensive?"

Even on the federal level, efforts are moving sluggishly, with the Consumer Product Safety Commission advancing proposals to make portable generators safer only as recently as April 2023, without setting a definitive timeline for the adoption of these regulations. In Harris County, proposals for tighter controls of potential CO sources in residences have stalled, leaving regulatory changes that might prevent poisonings up in the air. Meanwhile, scientists contend that the risk for these tragedies is only escalating as climate change augments the odds of severe weather conditions.

Dr. David Persse, Houston’s chief medical officer, highlighted the urgency for action regardless of the climate change debate's focal points. “Whether you want to blame it on this, that or the other, I don’t care. The world is changing. The climate is changing,” Persse told The Texas Tribune. He advocates not only for bolstered electric grid reliability but also for preventative measures, like mandating CO detectors, to protect residents from turning to generators during power outages. With a clear call to action, Persse emphasized, “Now is our opportunity to get ahead of this, because this is certainly going to happen again, and we need to better prepare for the next time around.”