GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) The Galveston County District Attorney says reports of cold-related deaths are deeply disturbing and need to be investigated.
Jack Roady told ABC13 news partner I-45 Now that once the Galveston County Medical Examiner determines the number of deaths related to the cold, he will ask local police agencies to investigate the circumstances surrounding them. At the same time, he says, his office will be looking into who is responsible at the state level for making decisions to cut power and why. And once those investigations are done, we re going to look at that evidence and determine whether there is evidence to support a criminal charge, Roady said.
On Thursday afternoon, the Galveston County medical examiner confirmed that the death toll of people dying as a result of exposure to the cold weather and lack of power rose to three.
GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) On Thursday afternoon, the Galveston County medical examiner confirmed that the death toll of people dying as a result of exposure to the cold weather and lack of power rose to three.
According to an update, a total of three people have been confirmed dead due to exposure and five are suspected to have died as a result of exposure.
One additional suspected death may have been due to carbon monoxide poisoning, according to the county. However, those deaths are awaiting autopsies to confirm the cause.
The three confirmed deaths include a 50-year-old man from Hitchcock, an 88-year-old woman from Bacliff and a man in his 70s whose death may have been related to carbon monoxide poisoning. He lived near Santa Fe, according to officials.