Puerto Rico utility says it has restored power to all its customers
Puerto Rico’s government-owned utility has restored electricity to all of its customers, nearly 11 months after Hurricane Maria ravaged the island.
The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) tweeted about the milestone Tuesday, identifying the residents of the final house as Charlie, Jazmín and their children in Ponce.
PREPA specified to ABC News that 100 percent of customers eligible for restored service have received it, leaving some with damaged lines or who rely on lines through the El Yunque National Forest yet to get electricity.
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Maria hit Puerto Rico Sept. 20, likely killing more than 1,000 people. The power infrastructure there was already in a dilapidated state and PREPA was billions of dollars in debt, and the storm knocked out nearly the entire island’s electricity.
It was the second largest power outage in United States history.
Power restoration cost billions of dollars, largely coming from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers. It will cost billions more to bring service to a more resilient level.
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