How a Texas man turned Whataburger into the state’s power outage tracker
What caused the power outages in Southeast Texas?
Hurricane Beryl, a Category 1 storm, caused power outages in Southeast Texas by toppling transmission lines and knocking down trees. At its peak, around 2.26 million customers were without power, primarily in the Houston area. Restoring electricity across the region is expected to take days, with some areas potentially taking weeks.
How did Bryan Norton utilize the Whataburger app during the outage?
Bryan Norton, a tech worker and podcast host, discovered that the Whataburger app's map could be used to gauge where power in Houston was still on or had been restored during outages caused by Hurricane Beryl2. He noticed that the app showed which Whataburger restaurants were open, and since they have a massive presence across Houston, this information helped residents find areas with power and access to essentials like food and gas.