Post-Hurricane Maria havoc is stirred with the imminent breach of Puero Rico’s Guajataca Lake breaching dam barriers, compelling approximately 70,000 to flee the already storm-saturated, flattened island state. Synonymously, any dam breach prevents military assets, public safety, and search and rescue personnel from providing aid and salvation to Puerto Rico’s government and its citizens.
The area in question is illustrated as follows:
ALERT: A dam failure at Guajataca Lake, PR. Residents along the river, which runs north, are being urged to evacuate per @NWSSanJuan #PRwx pic.twitter.com/i01hb8I8V8
— WeatherNation (@WeatherNation) September 22, 2017
Puerto Rico’s Guajataca Lake Dam, managed by Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), feeds into the ocean via a mechanized gate (dam) which is inoperable since Hurricane Maria disabled all power supply. Without control of water flows ordinarily adjusted by the dam’s gates, Puerto Rico’s government assessed the significant potential of the dam overflowing, which could result in tremendous loss of life.
PREPA is government owned-operated, so the deteriorating situation falls entirely with Puerto Rico’s authority and not a private electric company.
Footage provided by WeatherNation.com depicts the havoc stirring in Puerto Rico’s northwest sector where Guajataca Lake is breaching dam capacity:
We just received new video of the dam failure coming out of Lake Guajataca, PR. #PuertoRico pic.twitter.com/LMdXzKEca4
— WeatherNation (@WeatherNation) September 22, 2017
According to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis report, PREPA has filed bankruptcy in July 2017, and that the power supplier’s struggles have some influence behind an exodus of PR residents relocating to the mainland.
In its September 23, 2017 press release, IEEFA said, “The utility’s struggles are a key part of the commonwealth’s struggles to restructure about $74 billion in debts, overhaul its economy and stem the outflow of Puerto Rican citizens to the U.S. mainland.”
In August 2017 press release, the IEEFA called for an “independent “inspector general “to take over the management, operations, and restructuring of the Puerto Rico Electric Authority” so as to “institute improvements, root out waste, fraud and abuse, and establish reliable internal controls and reporting that form the basis for sound budget and energy planning.”
Naturally, with the Guajataca Lake Dam breaching, timing is of the essence to evacuate and rescue thousands of residents in the direct pathway of enormous floodwaters.
Limited Accessibility
As a US island territory wholly dependent on resources via air and sea, US Coast Guard helicopters are reportedly whirring overhead in the agency’s attempts to assess and rescue survivors of Hurricane Maria. As a state surrounded by water, police officers, firefighters, power company linemen, telecommunications technicians, and health care professionals will not find it easily accessible and thus delay aid from arriving.
Naturally, with the Guajataca Lake Dam breaching, timing is of the essence to evacuate and rescue thousands of residents in the direct pathway of enormous floodwaters.
PR’s Resolve
As a Washington Post report reflected, Puerto Rico’s citizens are indicating a mix of perseverance and resignation. One Hurricane Maria survivor, Lizmarie Bultron said, “Everything I had is gone. I lost my whole house, the only thing left is the floor. And this, this water won’t be gone for at least a month. All we can do is wait. Wait for help to come. That’s the only choice. But no one has come yet. Not FEMA, not anyone.”
Joreg Diaz, 72, told WaPo,”There’s only one thing I’m waiting for. The airport to open. I just heard on the radio, eight months without electricity and water? That’s unreasonable. You can’t live like this … It’s a dark time now. A dark time for Puerto Rico.” Mr. Diaz has designs on relocating to Orlando, Florida to reside with his two siblings.
Conversely, Geraldo Ramirez, 36, has endured Hurricane Georges in 1998 and has hope that he’ll come out of this one: “But it’s okay, we will make do. We are used to it and it’s always the same. Georges, Hugo, we lose power and we lose water. But we know how to survive.” Easier said than done, but there is always solace in knowing hope is alive and help is on the way.
