Current:Home > reviewsBattered by Hurricane Fiona, this is what a blackout looks like across Puerto Rico -Excel Money Vision
Battered by Hurricane Fiona, this is what a blackout looks like across Puerto Rico
View
Date:2025-04-24 10:34:51
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! (2)
Related
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Five-star recruit who signed to play for Deion Sanders and Colorado enters transfer portal
- This new Google Maps feature is game changer for EV drivers
- Noisy Starbucks? Coffee chain unveils plans to dim cacophony in some stores
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Golden State Warriors to miss NBA playoffs after play-in loss to Sacramento Kings
- A Tarot reading told her money was coming. A lottery ticket worth $500K was in her purse.
- Carl Erskine, longtime Dodgers pitcher and one of the Boys of Summer, dies at 97
- DoorDash steps up driver ID checks after traffic safety complaints
- John Lennon's son Sean Ono Lennon, Paul McCartney's son James McCartney release song together
Ranking
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- Sen. Bob Menendez could blame wife in bribery trial, unsealed court documents say
- Kathy Griffin, who appeared on 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,' slams star Larry David
- Alaska Airlines briefly grounds flights due to technical issue
- Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment
- Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes lands on cover for Time 100 most influential people of 2024
- 2024 WNBA draft, headlined by No. 1 pick Caitlin Clark, shatters TV viewership record
- Stock market today: Asian benchmarks are mixed while US seems committed to current rates
Recommendation
DeepSeek: Did a little known Chinese startup cause a 'Sputnik moment' for AI?
Maui Fire Department report on deadly wildfire details need for more equipment and mutual aid plans
Mega Millions winning numbers for April 16 posted after delay caused by 'technical difficulties'
Matthew Perry hailed for '17 Again' comedy chops: 'He'd figure out a scene down to the atoms'
Sonya Massey's father decries possible release of former deputy charged with her death
Matthew Perry hailed for '17 Again' comedy chops: 'He'd figure out a scene down to the atoms'
How Ukraine aid views are shaped by Cold War memories, partisanship…and Donald Trump — CBS News poll
Russian missiles slam into a Ukraine city and kill 13 people as the war approaches a critical stage