Tx. Mayor Resigns After Telling 'Lazy' Residents 'No One Owes You' Anything amid Calls for Help: 'Quit Crying'

Tim Boyd stepped down amid one of the worst winter storms in Texas' history

Photo: Ron Jenkins/Getty

A West Texas mayor resigned from his post amid backlash after he slammed "lazy" and "weak" residents seeking government help following power outages and freezing temperatures brought on by a vicious winter storm.

Tim Boyd, the mayor of Colorado City, Texas, shared a scathing message on Facebook Tuesday claiming residents seeking help were looking for "handouts" — and by that afternoon, had announced his resignation, ABC affiliate KTXS reported.

The since-deleted message — which lives on in screenshots and is riddled with spelling and grammar errors — began with an introductory line that said he intended to "hurt some feelings."

"No one owes you [or] your family anything; nor is it the local government's responsibility to support you during trying times like this! Sink or swim it's your choice!" Boyd wrote. "The City and County, along with power providers or any other service owes you NOTHING! I'm sick and tired of people looking for a damn handout!"

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Boyd urged those who'd lost power to "step up and come up with a game plan" to keep their family safe, and told those without water to "deal without and think outside of the box" for a survival solution.

"If you are sitting at home in the cold because you have no power and are sitting there waiting for someone to come rescue you because your [sic] lazy is [a] direct result of your raising!" he wrote. "Only the strong will survive and the weak will parish [sic]."

As of Tuesday night, more than 1,300 people in Colorado City were still without power, and temperatures dipped into the low 20s, according to the Dallas Morning News.

The town, which sits between Abilene, Midland and Odessa, has about 4,000 residents, according to the US Census Bureau.

Boyd concluded his message by doubling down on his refusal to help the residents of his town, and urged them to "quit crying and looking for a handout."

Shortly after, he announced his resignation in a post that apologized "for the wording and some of the phrases" he used in his initial post, KTXS reported. He did, however, state that he "won't deny for one minute" what he said in the original message.

"I would never want to hurt the elderly or anyone that is in true need of help to be left to fend for themselves. I was only making the statement that those folks that are too lazy to get up and fend for themselves but are capable should not be dealt a handout," he reportedly wrote. "Please understand, if I had to do it over again, I would have just kept my words to myself and if I did say them I would have used better wording and been more descriptive."

The controversy came as Texas was slammed with its worst winter storm in decades, one that left millions without power and killed at least 23 people, according to The New York Times.

PowerOutage.US reported that as of Wednesday morning, 2.5 million people still do not have power amid freezing temperatures due to damaged electric grids.

Boyd — whom PEOPLE was unable to reach for comment — is no longer listed as mayor on Colorado City's website, though an agenda from a Feb. 9 council meeting does name him mayor.

His apology message stated that he had already "turned in" his resignation and had not signed up for re-election, though it remains unclear if he stepped down before sending his controversial post. His name remains listed as a city councilmember.