Power was restored to nearly all electrical customers across Puerto Rico on Wednesday following a massive blackout that occurred as the island prepared to welcome the New Year. By Wednesday afternoon, approximately 98% of Puerto Rico's 1.47 million utility customers had their electricity restored, according to Luma Energy, the private firm responsible for the management of power transmission and distribution throughout the region.

The extensive outage, which commenced early on New Year's Eve, affected households, hospitals, and essential services like water and sewage systems, highlighting ongoing issues with the island's electrical infrastructure. Although nearly all customers had regained power, the company cautioned that sporadic outages could continue for several days as full service restoration may take up to two days.

According to Juan Saca, the president of Luma Energy, "Given the fragile nature of the grid, we will need to manage available generation to customer demand, which will likely require rotating temporary outages." Initial investigations into the blackout point to a failure in an underground electric line in the southern part of the territory.

Governor-elect Jenniffer González Colón, who is scheduled to take office soon, advised residents to moderate their energy consumption during this period of restoration to prevent further strain on the system. "These days, I urge you to be moderate with your energy consumption to help reduce load shifting," she stated on her social media post.

The fragile power grid has long been a persistent issue for Puerto Rico, exacerbated by natural disasters such as Hurricane Maria in 2017, which left many residents without power for extended periods. In the months following, numerous outages have been recorded, including a significant number of customers left without electricity during extreme weather events.

The recent blackout came at a time when residents were bracing for an increase in electricity rates, with the Puerto Rican Energy Bureau approving a rate hike effective from January to March, adding further financial pressure on households already stressed by unreliable power supply.

This event serves as a reminder of the challenges Puerto Rico faces in maintaining its electrical infrastructure and the need for ongoing improvements, a theme highlighted in Governor González Colón's campaign, where she pledged to establish an "energy czar" to oversee power operations.

For more details, read from AP News and LA Times.