HOUSTON — On Wednesday, CenterPoint said it had restored power to more than 98% of its customers, but several schools and day cares in the Houston area were still without power.
It's having a significant impact on families trying to get back to normal after Hurricane Beryl brought widespread damage and power outages across Southeast Texas last week.
"It's been miserable," Chuck Hall said.
Hall owns Robindell Private School in southwest Houston. The school stays busy even during Houston's hot summer months, but since Beryl plowed through its hallways and classrooms, it has been dark and sweltering.
"The worst part is not to know what to tell the parents," Hall said.
Hundreds of families are stuck in limbo waiting on a clear answer from CenterPoint.
"I've had moms driving through the parking lot in tears telling me they're going to get fired from their jobs if they don't come in today," Hall said. "We've gotten that story over and over and there's nothing we can do."
The few children they have been able to take are in the lone air-conditioned room on school grounds. On Tuesday, CenterPoint finally told them they would finish the job overnight. Hall paid a security guard to wait on the crew, but they never showed up even though CenterPoint told him they did.
"I just can't trust anything they tell me anymore," Hall said. "I've been lied to so many times over the phone."
Crews finally showed up Wednesday morning and so did KHOU 11 News. When they saw our cameras, they threatened to leave without finishing the job.
"Why they would make the comment: 'If you put us on camera, we're leaving.' Is mind-boggling to me," Hall said.
Meanwhile, at Oakdale Private School in the Spring area, their marquee says it all.
"It's really affecting all of us around here," Heather Ramos, director of the Oakdale Private School, said.
When they got power back Saturday, they restocked their fridges to open up Monday, but it was short-lived.
"Everybody was ready and then bam we're out again," Ramos said.
Now, it's back to waiting.
"Every time we call, we're being told something different," Ramos said.
At Robindell, their wait is finally over. The power kicked back on Wednesday while a KHOU 11 News crew was there, but folks remain frustrated with how CenterPoint is communicating during the crisis.
"Just be honest -- tell people so they can plan for it," Hall said.
KHOU 11 News asked CenterPoint about their linemen threatening to leave the work site if we filmed them. The company told us that is not CenterPoint policy.
The company also confirmed they have crews at Oakdale working to restore power to that school Wednesday evening.