More than half of Puerto Rico’s homes and businesses are without power in darkness after the arrival of Storm Ernesto, which has intensified into a Category One hurricane.
The island’s primary electricity provider, LUMA Energy, reported that around 998,000 customers were left in the dark as of 03:05 EDT (07:05 GMT), according to CBS News, a partner of the BBC.
Ernesto, which strengthened on Wednesday, continues to gain power, with gusts reaching up to 85 mph (140 km/h). The storm is moving north towards Bermuda, where it is expected to make landfall by Friday. Forecasters warn that Ernesto could escalate into a major hurricane within the next 48 hours.
Overnight, the storm-battered Puerto Rico, bringing torrential rain with up to 10 inches (25 cm) expected in some areas, according to the US National Hurricane Center (NHC).
LUMA’s President and CEO, Juan Saca, stated that more than 1,500 workers are actively engaged in efforts to restore power. “We need to assess the situation to determine the necessary actions to resolve the outages,” Saca told Reuters.
Puerto Rico’s power grid, already fragile from previous storms, has been devastated by hurricanes in the past.
In 2022, Hurricane Fiona left around 80% of the island’s homes and businesses without power for nearly a month, highlighting the vulnerability of the island’s infrastructure.
Ernesto is the fifth named storm of this Atlantic hurricane season.
The recent devastation follows Hurricane Beryl, which, as the earliest recorded Category five storm in the Atlantic, caused widespread destruction across the Caribbean and the Texas Gulf Coast last month, killing dozens and leaving millions without power.
Puerto Rico’s repeated struggles with severe storms underscore the need for a more resilient power grid and infrastructure to protect its residents from future disasters.