Island-wide blackout hits Puerto Rico as residents prepare for Easter weekend
San Juan, Puerto Rico (AP) — An island-wide blackout hit Puerto Rico on Wednesday as the largely Catholic residents of the U.S. territory prepared to celebrate the Easter weekend, officials said.
All 1.4 million clients on the island were without power, Hugo Sorrentini, spokesman for Luma Energy, which oversees the transmission and distribution of power, told The Associated Press. “The entire island is without generation,” he said.
Hotels were at near-capacity, with thousands of tourists celebrating Easter vacations on the island.
Meanwhile, at least 78,000 clients were without water, with officials warning that power likely won’t be fully restored for another 48 to 72 hours.
“This is unacceptable,” said Josué Colón, the island’s so-called energy czar and former executive director of Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority.
It was not immediately clear what caused the shutdown, the latest in a string of major blackouts on the island in recent years. Gov. Jenniffer González, who was traveling, said officials were “working diligently” to address the outage.
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San Juan, Puerto Rico (AP) — An island-wide blackout hit Puerto Rico on Wednesday as the largely Catholic residents of the U.S. territory prepared to celebrate the Easter weekend, officials said.
All 1.4 million clients on the island were without power, Hugo Sorrentini, spokesman for Luma Energy, which oversees the transmission and distribution of power, told The Associated Press. “The entire island is without generation,” he said.
Hotels were at near-capacity, with thousands of tourists celebrating Easter vacations on the island.
Meanwhile, at least 78,000 clients were without water, with officials warning that power likely won’t be fully restored for another 48 to 72 hours.
“This is unacceptable,” said Josué Colón, the island’s so-called energy czar and former executive director of Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority.
It was not immediately clear what caused the shutdown, the latest in a string of major blackouts on the island in recent years. Gov. Jenniffer González, who was traveling, said officials were “working diligently” to address the outage.
puerto rico power outages
R Impactx
#puertoricoblackout #puertoricoeaster #puertorico #puertoricopoweroutage #poweroutages #island #blackout
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NewsTranscript
00:00Island-wide blackout hits Puerto Rico as residents prepare for Easter weekend San Juan,
00:05Puerto Rico, AP. An island-wide blackout hit Puerto Rico on Wednesday as the largely Catholic
00:12residents of the U.S. territory prepared to celebrate the E.T. Easter weekend officials said
00:18all 1.4 million clients on the island were without power. Hugo Sorrentini, spokesman for Luma Energy,
00:26which oversees the transmission and distribution of power, told the Associated Press.
00:32The entire island is without generation, he said. Hotels were at near capacity,
00:38with thousands of tourists celebrating Easter vacations on the island. Meanwhile,
00:44at least 78,000 clients were without water, with officials warning that power likely won't be
00:50fully restored for another 48 to 72 hours. This is unacceptable, said Josue Colon,
00:58the island's so-called energy czar and former executive director of Puerto Rico's Electric Power
01:03Authority. It was not immediately clear what caused the shutdown, the latest in a string of major
01:12blackouts on the island in recent years. Governor Jennifer Gonzalez, who was traveling, said officials
01:19were, working diligently to address the outage. Thousands of Puerto Ricans were fuming over the
01:25latest outage, with many renewing their calls that the government cancel the contract with Luma and
01:30Genera PR, which oversees generation of power on the island. This is a total disaster, said Orlando Huertas,
01:3968, as he sipped a drink with a friend at a street-side bar and criticized the government for not
01:45doing enough to tackle the chronic outages. Dozens of people were forced to walk next to the rails of
01:52the rapid transit system that serves the capital, San Juan, while scores of businesses including the
01:58biggest mall in the Caribbean were forced to close. Professional baseball and basketball games were
02:04canceled as the hum of generators and smell of smoke filled the air. Traffic became snarled as police
02:11officers were deployed to busy intersections. By late Wednesday afternoon, some $5,000 to $7,000.
02:19Clients had their power restored, although that number is expected to fluctuate. Those without
02:25generators crowded around grocery stores and other businesses to buy ice. I'm desperate.
02:31My generator is broken, said Carmen Suriel, who worried about the impact of the blackout on her two
02:37children, a six-month-old and a five-year-old with Down syndrome, as the temperature rose across Puerto
02:43Rico on Wednesday. Alma Ramirez, 69, said she was frustrated with the constant outages, some of which
02:51had already damaged her TV and microwave, forcing her to buy new appliances. They have to improve,
02:58she said of the government. Those who are affected are us, the poor. The island of 3.2 million residents
03:05has a more than 40% poverty rate, and not everyone can afford solar panels or generators.
03:12While there was a push to use more renewable energy sources under the administration of former
03:17U.S. President Joe Biden, which provided Puerto Rico with mega generators and other resources,
03:23experts worry that won't happen under U.S. President Donald Trump. Roughly 117,000 homes and
03:30businesses on the island have solar rooftops. Meanwhile, petroleum-fired power plants provide
03:3762% of Puerto Rico's power, natural gas 24%, coal 8%, and renewables 7%, according to the U.S.
03:46Energy Information Administration. Daniel Hernandez, Vice President of Operations at Genera PR, said,
03:53at a news conference that a disturbance hit the transmission system shortly after noon on Wednesday.
03:58Wednesday. During a time when the grid is vulnerable because there are not many machines regulating
04:04frequency at that hour, Veronica Ferraioli, acting governor and secretary of state for Puerto Rico,
04:11said the White House reached out to local officials and said they are available if needed.
04:17Pablo José Hernández, Puerto Rico's representative in Congress, said he would work to ensure that
04:23Washington understands the real and urgent situation Puerto Ricans face every day.
04:30The electric grid crisis is frustrating, and after years of blackouts, it feels like...
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