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On New Years Eve, power grid failure leaves nearly 80% of Puerto Rico in the dark

By Chris Benson
"We are demanding answers and solutions from both Luma and Genera, who must expedite the restart of the generating units outside the fault area and keep the people duly informed about the measures they are taking to restore service throughout the Island," Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said Tuesday. Photo Provided By Enid Salgado Mercado/EPA-EFE
"We are demanding answers and solutions from both Luma and Genera, who must expedite the restart of the generating units outside the fault area and keep the people duly informed about the measures they are taking to restore service throughout the Island," Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said Tuesday. Photo Provided By Enid Salgado Mercado/EPA-EFE

Dec. 31 (UPI) -- More than 1 million people still are without electricity in Puerto Rico after a widespread power outage hit the island, according to reports.

It could be up to 48 hours for power to be fully restored "as conditions permit," the energy company Luma had said Tuesday morning.

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More than 80% of Puerto Rico, or some 1.3 million customers, were left with no power at about 5:30 a.m. local time, the energy company Luma said on X earlier in the day.

In its 5:30 p.m. ET update, LUMA's website showed power was restored to 13.2% of affected customers, with 194,429 total customers experiencing power.

The Medical Center and the Municipal Hospital of San Juan was back in service, and the company said in its update during the day the municipality of Culebra also was in service with Genera generators. Genera PR is contracted to operate power generation units on the island.

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Officials at the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport, meanwhile, said flights were operating normally as officials worked on its electric generators.

Luma activated its emergency operations center and will provide "regular updates" every two hours, officials stated.

San Juan resident Miosotis Corretjer told NBC the situation was "totally frustrating" and claimed the Puerto Rican government was not doing enough.

"We are demanding answers and solutions from both Luma and Genera, who must expedite the restart of the generating units outside the fault area and keep the people duly informed about the measures they are taking to restore service throughout the Island," Gov. Pedro Pierluisi stated on social media, adding he was in contact with Luma and the private energy company Genera PR.

An investigation is underway but indicators point to a failure in an underground power line at a switchyard located in Guayanilla on the southwest part of the island, El Nuevo reported.

The power line in the southern part of the U.S. commonwealth island caused a "cascade effect" that led to failure of multiple power plants, which would take "much of the day" to fix, Jose Colon, director of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, said in a radio interview during the day.

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By 9:15 a.m. local time roughly 14% of Puerto Rico's 1.4 million utility customers had power, Luma Energy's tracking page showed.

Shortly before 11 a.m. Luma said service had been restored in "some areas."

"Luma will be restoring power to customers in phases. We've already begun the process of reenergizing some customers," the company wrote later in the morning.

For Puerto Ricans the power blackouts are not a new occurrence with more than 700,000 in August likewise left with no power after tropical storm Ernesto hit the troubled U.S. territory.

Meanwhile, the outgoing Biden administration invested billions of dollars over the last few years to aid the island's transition to a renewable energy grid as a means to address its ongoing power woes.

Puerto Rico's electrical grid suffered a failure in November 2017 that left thousands without power after Hurricane Maria, and the entire island was left without power when Hurricane Fiona arrived in September 2022.

Over the summer public protests were seen in San Juan due to growing anger over Puerto Rico's frail power grid which prompted San Juan Mayor Miguel Romero to declare a state of emergency in the capital city.

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In October, the U.S. Energy Department announced a more than $860M private loan guarantee for construction of solar and battery storage facilities to move the island one step closer to its 2050 energy independent goal amid a slow, global transition to clean energy like other states such as Hawaii and California.

This was followed in November by $440 million to equip vulnerable homes with rooftop solar and battery systems estimated to lower energy bills for between 30,000 and 40,000 low-income, single-family households in Puerto Rico to improve household energy resilience and keep lights on during extreme weather events, according to the Energy Department.

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