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The family of an 11-year-old who died in Texas is suing power company Entergy and grid operator Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) for more than $100 million, citing gross negligence over the boy’s death. Cristian Pavon died on Tuesday after a frigid night in his family’s mobile home in Conroe, Texas.
The home had been without power since the Sunday before.
As CBS Houston affiliate KHOU reports, the lawsuit claims Pavon died of hypothermia. A cause of death has yet to be released by medical examiners.
The family is being represented by attorney Tony Buzbee. CBS News has reached out for comment.
Pavon’s mother, Maria Elisa Pineda Guzman, said the family had been sleeping in one room to keep warm. “He fell asleep. He had a shirt, a sweater, two pairs of pants, socks on,” Pavon’s aunt, Jaliza Yera, told K’HOU. His stepfather checked on him later that evening and put another blanket over him.
The family tried to wake up Pavon on Tuesday afternoon but he was unresponsive. The family told KHOU that they tried calling 911 but were waiting on a Spanish-language operator.
KHOU obtained statements from Entergy and ERCOT about the case. “We are deeply saddened by the loss of life in our community. We are unable to comment due to pending litigation,” Entergy responded.
ERCOT released a statement saying it had yet to review the lawsuit. “[We] will respond accordingly when we do. Our thoughts are with all Texans who have or are suffering due to this past week.”
“However, because approximately 46% of privately-owned generators tripped offline this past Monday morning, we are confident that our grid operators made the right choice to avoid a statewide blackout,” ERCOT said.
