CYPRESS, Texas — Across Cypress, frustrations in this historic winter storm reaching a fever pitch.
"It's bulls**t," said Paul Nguyen. "I feel like we shouldn't be going through this. It's been, like, three days."
Three days and counting, and things only getting worse for many families. The power grid has been anything but reliable.
"For awhile, it was hectic," said Coby McGee. "We didn't know if we were going to have fuel or the generator would be working."
For some, not having power comes with deadly consequences.
"It's life or death," McGee said. "It's not a luxury for him. He has to have it to breathe."
At the Solea Senior Community in Cypress, family members said residents have been in the dark for days. There's no water either. Some families used snow to keep their refrigerators cold. Others used it to fill up bathtubs to stock up on water.
"It's been a little crazy," said Christine Patterson. "A ton of dirty dishes piling up. Really hard flushing toilets obviously."
Finding bottled water nearly impossible. Lines were up to an hour long just to get in the door at this Cypress HEB off Tuckerton Road.
"We drove to the Heights to find some water. Unfortunately everyone is out, or there are long lines for up to two hours," said Parth Shah.
Shah's wife Bulbul Patel is 38 weeks pregnant.
"It's been really rough to stay warm, and I'm worried about water more than power," Patel said.
Toddlers and their parents have been left in the dark for hours. There is no real guarantee when the lights will stay on for good. Anger is escalating as homes sit in the dark while empty nearby schools closed for the week stay lit up. Neighbors fear this chaos could last for several more days.
"These things could have been avoided, if proper measures had been taken," Shah said. "This situation could have been avoided."