Almost all power has been restored in Puerto Rico, two days after a blackout left the entire island without electricity.
As of 10 a.m. on Friday, 99 percent of the 1.4 million customers had electricity, according to Luma Energy, the private contractor that operates the island’s power transmission system. The blackout began Wednesday afternoon, and on Thursday afternoon 40 percent of customers were still without power.
This week’s power failure, which caused hundreds of businesses to close and forced the airport in San Juan, the capital, to run on generators, was only the latest blackout for residents, who have endured years of unreliable electricity service. Puerto Rico’s power grid has been plagued by extensive problems since Hurricane Maria hit the island in 2017, leaving many without power for months.
Luma Energy said the blackout was caused by a series of failures in the power transmission system, but the cause remained under investigation.
Puerto Rico’s power system has suffered from years of mismanagement and poor maintenance. The island experienced a major blackout on New Year’s Eve, when most of Puerto Rico was darkened by a power outage, leading to calls for the government to cancel contracts with the companies that oversee the transmission, distribution and generation of power on the island.
“When are we going to do something?” Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican reggaeton superstar, wrote on X on Wednesday.
Officials warned in March that the system was not likely to have enough supply to meet peak demand over the summer.
Jenny Gross is a reporter for The Times covering breaking news and other topics.
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