Current:Home > FinanceBattered by Hurricane Fiona, this is what a blackout looks like across Puerto Rico -TradeStation
Battered by Hurricane Fiona, this is what a blackout looks like across Puerto Rico
View
Date:2025-04-17 20:22:40
Hurricane Fiona made landfall in the Dominican Republic on Monday morning, as millions in Puerto Rico face flash flooding, mudslides and an island-wide blackout.
The National Hurricane Center warned that the Category 1 hurricane is moving into the Atlantic and is likely to strengthen. Fiona, which is traveling with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph, is forecast to travel near or east of the Turks and Caicos Islands as early as Monday night.
In Puerto Rico, the full extent of the damage is still unclear as the storm has unleashed torrential rains across much of the island, causing massive flooding and landslides. Island officials have said that some roads, bridges and other infrastructure have been damaged or washed away as a result of the downpour.
Most of the island also remains without power, according to utility companies' reports tracked by PowerOutage.us. More than 775,000 residents also have no access to clean water.
The latest hurricane to batter the U.S. territory, Fiona struck two days before the fifth anniversary of Maria, the devastating storm that killed more than 3,000 people and nearly destroyed the island's electricity system.
On Monday, Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi called the damages to the island's housing and fragile infrastructure from the Category 1 storm "catastrophic."
"In many areas, flooding is worse than what we saw during Hurricane Maria," Pierluisi said during a press briefing.
"So far we've gotten about 30 inches of rain, even in areas where they had never experienced flooding," he added.
Heavy rainfall and life-threatening flooding risks are expected to last through Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. The saturation "will also continue to trigger mudslides and rockfall in areas of steep terrain."
Fiona's powerful winds and the subsequent deluge of rainfall knocked out the island's power grid, throwing the island into a blackout. Officials have said it will take several days to fully restore service to over a million residents.
Shortly after the hurricane struck on Sunday, Pierluisi said it would be a "matter of days," and not months, to fully restore the grid — referring to the drawn-out power restoration after Hurricane Maria in 2017.
Since then, the island's power crews were able to restore electricity to about 100,000 customers living in the northeast region near the capital San Juan, Luma Energy, the island's private electric utility, wrote on Facebook.
President Biden has approved an emergency declaration for Puerto Rico on Sunday, authorizing the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief efforts.
Adrian Florido contributed reporting.
veryGood! (425)
Related
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- Urban Outfitters Apologizes for High Prices and Lowers Costs on 100 Styles
- Opinion: Harris has adapted to changing media reality. It's time journalism does the same.
- What is Indigenous Peoples' Day? What to know about push to eliminate Columbus Day
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
- Asheville residents still without clean water two weeks after Helene
- Trump’s protests aside, his agenda has plenty of overlap with Project 2025
- Julia Fox regrets her relationship with Ye: 'I was being used as a pawn'
- Nearly 400 USAID contract employees laid off in wake of Trump's 'stop work' order
- Profiles in clean energy: Once incarcerated, expert moves students into climate-solution careers
Ranking
- How to watch the 'Blue Bloods' Season 14 finale: Final episode premiere date, cast
- Kamala Harris, Donald Trump face off on 'Family Feud' in 'SNL' cold open
- Historic Jersey Shore amusement park closes after generations of family thrills
- Blaze that killed two Baltimore firefighters in 2023 is ruled accidental
- New data highlights 'achievement gap' for students in the US
- NASCAR 2024 playoffs at Charlotte: Start time, TV, live stream, lineup for Roval race
- Most AAPI adults think legal immigrants give the US a major economic boost: AP-NORC/AAPI Data poll
- Operator dies and more than a dozen passengers hurt as New Jersey commuter train hits tree
Recommendation
'Survivor' 47 finale, part one recap: 2 players were sent home. Who's left in the game?
Sister Wives' Kody Brown Claims Ex Meri Brown Was Never Loyal to Me Ever in Marriage
Man with loaded gun arrested at checkpoint near Donald Trump’s weekend rally in Southern California
Murder trial of tech consultant in death of Cash App founder Bob Lee begins
EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
What makes the New York Liberty defense so good? They have 'some super long people'
Who plays on Monday Night Football? Breaking down Week 6 matchup
Forget the hot takes: MLB's new playoff system is working out just fine