Slumping energy prices translate to layoffs and bankruptcies for Texas oil country

At the beginning of 2020, Bobby Bounds was running a successful industrial painting company catering to the oil and gas sector in Midland, Texas. He had 12 employees, painting everything from storage tanks to pipes and valves.

Now he's been forced to close his doors and let his workers go. His business was a victim of the plunge in oil prices, caused by a severe dropoff in demand during the Covid-19 pandemic and price war sparked by Saudi Arabia and Russia. Immediately after the Dow crashed more than 2,000 points on March 9, Bound lost half a million dollars in active jobs.

Bobby Bounds has been forced to shut his industrial painting business in Midland, Texas because of the downturn in the energy market.

"It's kind of a slow death. You know, you start laying people off and finishing up the work you have and hoping the phone would ring," he said.

Read the full story by Pamela Boykoff and John Defterios and watch the video at CNN.com