“I needed a shot of patriotism. I needed strength to do this once again,” Emmayra Veguilla shared as she played the song “Hijios del Canaveral,” which was dedicated to Puerto Rico and its citizens.
Puerto Ricans can still remember what happened during Hurricane Maria in 2017. Who can forget a power grid destruction, a blackout of almost a year in some places, and the death of almost 3,000 people?
Five years later, they did not expect a disaster, much worse than the previous one, to strike again.
Hurricane Fiona, a Category 1 hurricane, landed in southwestern Puerto Rico last Sunday. It steadily rose to a Category 4 and caused chaos on the island, leaving road blockages, blackouts, and their power grids impaired once again. It was reported that on Wednesday, around 80% have lost access to electricity. There have been at least three deaths due to the hurricane.
People with generators are also encountering problems. Due to the blackout, gas is not available and they cannot use their vehicles.
Aside from the electricity problem, Puerto Ricans are running around frantically looking for water sources. On Wednesday, it was reported that more than 500,000 people do not have access to clean water.
Lack of water proved to be a major problem, especially due to the high temperatures in the region.
The government sent 18 water trucks to various parts of the island. With the total number of people affected, the so-called “oases” are not enough. Some families who lined up for water on Tuesday had to wait until Wednesday to get their ration because the supply ran out.
Some just opted to gather fresh water from a mountain runoff through the use of a bamboo pipe.
Carmen Yulin Cruz, a former Mayor of San Juan, said that Puerto Ricans may be resilient, but after going through various epidemics, disasters, and the pandemic these past few years, they are very tired. “The aid needs to start flowing,” she said.
The catastrophe has been declared by US President Joe Biden as a major disaster and a public health emergency by the US Department of Health and Human Services. In response, rescue teams have already been deployed to the island.
Fiona dumped about two feet of rain on parts of Puerto Rico before hurling across the eastern Dominican Republic and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
