Economy
Puerto Rico Is Hit by a Total Blackout
Almost seven months after Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico is experiencing a complete power outage. The island’s electricity provider said it will take from 24 to 36 hours to bring power back across the U.S. territory.
Puerto Rico is again in the dark: The island is experiencing a complete power outage, its first since right after Hurricane Maria hit nearly seven months ago.
Puerto Rico’s state-owned power authority, AEE (also known as PREPA), said the failure was caused by a bulldozer that damaged line 50700, an important underground section of the grid near the island’s largest power plant, about 50 miles south of the capital, San Juan. The bulldozer was removing a collapsed electricity tower when it hit the power line. It was operated by a crew employed by Cobra Energy, a mainland-based subcontractor that AEE hired to help in the reconstruction process.