With power gradually returning to select areas, including San Juan's municipal hospital, the situation has intensified discussions among local officials and residents regarding the persistent power issues that have plagued Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria struck in 2017. Jenniffer González-Colon, Puerto Rico's US congressional representative and future governor, emphasized the urgent need to rectify the failing energy system that repeatedly fails its citizens.
Current Governor Pedro Pierluisi also demanded accountability and decisive action from Luma and Genera, the primary energy companies responsible for the outages. This year alone has seen hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans affected by power failures, including a June outage impacting over 350,000 residents amid high temperatures, and more than 700,000 losing electricity during Hurricane Ernesto in August.
As residents wake up to another day without power, frustration grows. Enid Núñez, a resident, lamented that outages have become an expected part of life on the island. The power grid faced challenges even before the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria, leading to US government funding aimed at enhancing infrastructure and recovery from natural disasters. However, reports reveal that the implementation of these improvements has lagged due to various issues, including developmental delays and federal restrictions.
Mark Levine, New York City's Manhattan borough president, voiced outrage at the power infrastructure's failure to recover, stating, "This is 3.5 million American citizens. We owe them so much better." The calls for systemic reform and reliable energy access have never been more urgent as Puerto Rico steps into a new year amidst continued uncertainty regarding its power supply.
Current Governor Pedro Pierluisi also demanded accountability and decisive action from Luma and Genera, the primary energy companies responsible for the outages. This year alone has seen hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans affected by power failures, including a June outage impacting over 350,000 residents amid high temperatures, and more than 700,000 losing electricity during Hurricane Ernesto in August.
As residents wake up to another day without power, frustration grows. Enid Núñez, a resident, lamented that outages have become an expected part of life on the island. The power grid faced challenges even before the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria, leading to US government funding aimed at enhancing infrastructure and recovery from natural disasters. However, reports reveal that the implementation of these improvements has lagged due to various issues, including developmental delays and federal restrictions.
Mark Levine, New York City's Manhattan borough president, voiced outrage at the power infrastructure's failure to recover, stating, "This is 3.5 million American citizens. We owe them so much better." The calls for systemic reform and reliable energy access have never been more urgent as Puerto Rico steps into a new year amidst continued uncertainty regarding its power supply.
