Persistent Power Outages in Puerto Rico Week After Tropical Storm Ernesto

Tens of thousands of Puerto Rico residents were still without power on Tuesday, a week after Tropical Storm Ernesto hit the US territory. Authorities have promised to restore electricity to all affected areas by the weekend. The National Weather Service has issued another excessive heat advisory, warning of "dangerously hot and humid conditions."

More than 40,000 out of nearly 1.5 million customers remained without power in the afternoon. Officials stated that all schools should have electricity by late Tuesday. They also noted that around 80 per cent of emergency medical clinics, excluding hospitals, now have power.

Power Outages and Restoration Efforts

The northeast coastal town of Luquillo, a popular tourist destination, reported the highest number of outages, with 30 per cent of clients without power. Other affected areas include Fajardo, Río Grande, and Yabucoa. Juan Saca, president of Luma Energy, a private consortium managing Puerto Rico's power transmission and distribution, said the company is "working 24 hours a day." He mentioned that alongside storm-related outages, there is also a generation deficit.

Up to 70,000 clients could experience temporary outages late Tuesday. Another 90,000 were already affected on Monday due to a manual reduction in power to Puerto Rico's grid. "It's very annoying; I don't want to minimise that," Saca told reporters, emphasising that these outages are brief.

Political and Public Reactions

Luma Energy has faced criticism since taking over transmission and distribution in June 2021. Puerto Rico's Electric Power Authority is struggling with more than USD 9 billion in debt restructuring. Recently, more officials, including those campaigning for elections, have called for the government to cancel Luma's contract.

Governor Pedro Pierluisi has supported Luma's efforts and their quick response after Ernesto. "In the span of three days, already 96 per cent of the population had electric service," he said on Monday. During the storm last Tuesday and Wednesday, up to 750,000 clients lost power due to fallen trees and high winds.

Infrastructure Challenges

Puerto Rico's power grid remains fragile after Hurricane Maria devastated it in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm. The grid was already deteriorating due to lack of maintenance and investment before Maria struck. Anger persists among the island's 3.2 million residents, many of whom live in poverty and cannot afford generators or solar panels.

"With all the damage caused by the storm and Luma Energy's inefficiency in restoring power quickly and accurately, Puerto Rico urgently needs more reliable energy sources," said Jesus Hernandez Arroyo, president of the island's House energy commission.

Future Improvements

Puerto Rico's Energy Bureau questioned why the average outage duration per customer increased by 9 per cent from fiscal year 2023 to 2024, totalling 1,448 minutes. Julio Aguilar, Luma's director of reliability and distribution automation, explained at Tuesday's news conference that weather and other factors can cause fluctuations in outage durations within a year. He added that it takes five years to establish a base and metrics.

"The improvements are happening," he said. "They will be seen."