Texas heat

This is the first installment of "Powerless," a series from Public Health Watch examining how rising temperatures and skyrocketing electricity costs are placing Texans in danger.

A new comprehensive analysis of state data shows Texas prisons get so hot in summer that temperatures there would routinely violate state standards for other types of lockups. The state will be back in federal court to defend the conditions behind bars.

Drought conditions across Texas have intensified since earlier this year.

Judge Robert Pitman says inmates who sued the state could win their case but that the fix is not easy or cheap.

A Texas lawmaker wants to delay when the school year starts to help lessen strain on the state's power grid. Experts say it wouldn't make a difference.

Rain chances increase this month ahead of a wetter-than-normal winter forecast thanks to El Niño.

People are reporting a lot of cricket swarms around Austin this year. Drought could be a reason.

ERCOT went into emergency operations Wednesday night for the first time since 2021. It's still unclear what caused the power grid to get so close to rolling blackouts so quickly.

It starts with a call to 311.

The courts, along with federal and state lawmakers, have created a series of barriers against improving prison conditions with air conditioning.