The passage through the island of now Hurricane Ernesto by Puerto Rico affected the electric service, reason why Energy, the company in charge of the transmission and distribution of electric energy, has indicated that the global restoration It will be finalized this Sunday.
According to statements made by LUMA Energy President Juan Saca at a press conference on Friday, the estimated time for the global restoration of electrical service after the passage of the then tropical storm Ernesto between Tuesday night and Wednesday is, conservatively, Sunday morning.
Puerto Rico with 83% of areas with electricity
According to information published by LUMA on its website, as of 12:15 (16:15 GMT), power has been restored to 83% of its customers. 249,090 users are still without power.
In approximately 36 hours, service has been restored to approximately 500,000 of the more than 750,000 subscribers who lost electricity last Wednesday.
«Our crews are working hard under difficult conditions to restore service and make critical repairs as quickly and safely as possible, especially in San Juan and Caguas and on the islands of Vieques and Culebra.Saca said.
The president of LUMA pointed out that these areas were the most affected during the passage of the storm.
Saca expects that the company’s technicians will be able to restore 90% of the service by Friday night.
Fallen trees, damaged insulators and Hurricane Ernesto’s winds were the main causes of power outages.
Saca lamented a power outage that affected approximately 70,000 customers in the eastern part of the island due to a fallen cable on a transmission line.
Last night, a fire in the control cabinet of a switch at the Cerámica Substation in Carolina affected another 4,500 customers during the energization process.
“We are working on both incidents, which will be resolved today,” he said.
The Cayey Municipal Hospital, which houses the Puerto Rico Integrated Cancer Medical Center, has not yet regained power and is currently operating with a generator.
Secretary of the Interior Noelia Garcia said that LUMA Energy is seeking to recruit approximately 125 electrical technicians from the city of Orlando, Florida (USA) to help restore and reinforce the energy system.
Some people have criticised this decision for not prioritising local talent and seeking to hire staff from outside the island.
Saca reported that LUMA requires an additional 200 million dollars through a tariff review.
(With information from EFE)
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2024-08-18 04:37:07