It's not that Unusual. 2023 Cox Media Group. Pedro R. Pierluisi issued a series of updates on social media, urging people to remain calm and wait for official updates from government agencies and Luma. This is due to a mainland issue and system wide - with current conditions we are expecting this take awhile to restore. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) A major power outage hit Puerto Rico late Wednesday, plunging hundreds of thousands of customers into darkness after a fire erupted at one of the largest power plants in the U.S. territory. However, when an issue occurs on the mainland, from which only a number of cables are responsible for the entire Countys electricity, OPALCO has no power to fix the issue themselves. Victoria Prez, who lives in the capital of San Juan, said power in her neighborhood of Ro Piedras usually goes out two to three times a week, but that outages have recently worsened. Yes, it did. By Christine Chung. Pierluisi said both state and federal law enforcement authorities are investigating. The power grid has suffered a massive island-wide blackout, potentially caused by a circuit breaker failure at the Costa Sur generation plant. Luma said in an announcement on Thursday that the energy grid has suffered a massive island wide outage, potentially caused by a failed circuit breaker at Costa Sur power plant. The facility produces the most electricity on the island. This critical connective part of a powerline could be seen in a video posted to OPALCOs Facebook page, engulfed in a ball of sparks. No estimated restoration time.UPDATE 5am: Crews still working on this issue. Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Puerto Rico crews scramble to restore power after island-wide outage. Youd get one tree out and two more were falling behind you. WebSave. It's unclear whether the fire and DDoS attack are connected. Electric Providers Electric Providers for Puerto Rico . WebUPDATE: San Juan Island and Lopez have lost power now. Why it matters. The massive outage began around 8:45 p.m. Wednesday when an unspecified failure led to a fire at the Costa Sur Substation, said Kevin Acevedo, vice president of LUMA Energy. The outage, reported about 5 p.m. Thursday, was caused by an issue identified on the mainland with Puget Sound Energy, according to OPALCO. The island is powered by submarine cables, deep under the Salish Sea, with our mostly hydro-electric power generated by the mainlands Bonneville Power Administration. A large fire at an electrical substation for Puerto Rico's new electricity provider, Luma Energy, knocked out power for hundreds of thousands of the island's residents Thursday. OPALCO has big goals for more sustainable and reliable island energy, such as harnessing power from tides and establishing more solar panels, but efforts require millions of dollars in grants. Many in Puerto Rico had hoped for a quick improvement in service, but clients complain it has gotten even worse in Lumas first few days of operations with problems complicated by heavy rains this week followed by the explosion. While theyve been highly successful at securing grants, OPALCOs Bouchey acknowledges that as a small cooperative, expected to match any funds provided by state and government grants, they are limited by the sheer expense of such projects. Firefighters have since extinguished the flames at the facility outside the town of Guayanilla on the southwest coast. Many islanders found themselves in the dark after an uncommonly large winter storm pummeled the Northwest part of the State. During the outages, county residents took to Facebook, commenting on OPALCOs post of the fiery mainland jumper that caused the Christmas Eve outage. At 9:50 p.m. power was rerouted to Shaw Island and almost all of Orcas Island with the exception of Deer Harbor and Spring Point. As the lights are turning on in the remaining homes and businesses, little is known about what caused the fire that plunged the island into darkness. Learn about careers at Cox Media Group. As of 6:10 a.m., 1,231 of the 14,729 customers were without power, according to the outage map. 00936-3508 +1 (844) 888-5862. When it took over transmission and distribution in June, the governor at the time said the company had pledged to reduce power interruptions by 30% and the length of outages by 40%. February 23, 2023 1:30 am. SAN JUAN ISLANDS Power has been restored to most San Juan Islands residents early Friday after a countywide outage that impacted 99.99% of customers, according to an Orcas Power and Light Co-op outage map. Tackling the islands power vulnerability. Luma Energy, a private company that took over the islands power transmission and distribution system on June 1, said three units were knocked offline for reasons not immediately known. OPALCO crew were working with mainland power provider to restore power countywide. There is no estimated time of restoration at this point. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Luma is just 10 days into its new role as the island's power authority. Did you encounter any technical issues? LUMA The problems have persisted even after a private Canadian-American consortium, Luma, took over electricity transmission and distribution from Puerto Rico's public utility last June with a pledge to reduce the frequency of outages. OPALCO was posting regular updates on social media to keep islanders aware of the latest developments. Luma, a consortium made up of Calgary, Alberta-based Atco and Quanta Services Inc. of Houston, serves some 1.5 million customers. A dark street in San Juan after a major power outage on April 6. He hasnt had to do that since (Hurricane) Maria, Aquino said, adding that neither he nor his wife have been able to report the outages to Luma. Video footage circulating on social media showed a fire burning at one of the power substations in Costa Sur, on the islands southeastern coast. Puerto Ricos health secretary said generators at all hospitals and health centers were functioning and had enough fuel, adding that coronavirus vaccines remained properly stored at the correct temperature. Southern California Edison was also working to restore power outages in some areas, officials said. Just letting everyone know that there have been some power outages in parts of the (ta && ta.queueForLoad ? News. Customers Tracked. Luma said in a statement that power might not be restored until Thursday, given the size and scope of the outage. (AP Foto/Eduardo Verdugo) Eduardo Verdugo/AP Show More Show Less 7 of 10 Guadalupe Ruiz, de 92 aos, camina en su casa en San Juan Nuevo Parangaricutiro, Discovery Company. The cooperative began in 1937 after a group of 12 Orcas men went door to door to convince neighbors to put away their unreliable generators and Delco battery plants and welcome electricity to the islands. There are reports of over 1/2 million out in the region. By midnight, roughly 60,000 customers were still in the dark. In fiscal year 2022, 435 (3.7%) of children in foster care went missing from Washington's child welfare system. What's the best option? BREAKING: Much of the Metro area of Puerto Rico, the most populated area of the island, is without power right now after an explosion & fire at a power plant in the San Juan. Puerto Ricos fire department worked late into the night to put out the blaze as frustration and anger over yet another blackout continued to grow. As of 9 p.m., crews were still at work with no estimated restoration time. more. When Luma took over, company officials said that they were prepared to handle emergencies and hurricanes. Crews are continuing their work to stabilize the grid and reduce the future risk of intermittent power outages, the statement said. FBI San Juan authorities said they are "evaluating" the power outage and encouraged people with information to come forward. Puerto Rico Suffers Power Outages After Private Firm Takes Over Grid. In early June, Luma CEO Wayne Stensby told reporters that the company had more than 350 line workers and that the number was sufficient. Pedro Pierluisi, who cited the islands aqueducts and sewers authority. These storms will happen, and power will go out, leaving many asking what can actually be done to mitigate risk beyond having a stocked pantry and abundant candles and blankets. Decades-long debates surrounding DC,Puerto Rico and Guam statehood have been reignited. Police and fire services went to the scene. : Traveling to Puerto Rico got easier. As there are a lot of mainland outages it could be sometime before power is back on from mainland. Crew is responding. Here's the latest for Friday June 11th: Biden and G-7 leaders set to donate 1 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses; Senators working on new infrastructure compromise; Power outages in Puerto Rico; Search on for man who reportedly fell from California ferry. It has been many years since the Pacific NW has experienced a truly catastrophic windstorm, but it will happen again, and when it does, there will be outages far more significant than anything weve seen in the last 20 years.. Beyond the annoyance of a power outage, there can be larger, more dangerous consequences such as a loss of power to the local medical center or fire departments. At 6:25 p.m., OPALCO said crews had identified the issue and were on the way to fix it. (Photo by Ricardo ARDUENGO / AFP) (Photo by RICARDO ARDUENGO/AFP via Getty Images). SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) A major power outage hit Puerto Rico late Wednesday, plunging hundreds of thousands of customers into darkness after a fire The Community Church opened its doors to provide food and warmth to those families made homeless by the stormOPALCO suddenly was turned into the local water wellPeople came through the doors carrying buckets for water. What's the best option? The Puerto Rico Fire Department has confirmed This legacy, and a spirit of community, may in fact be our most reliable source of power when disaster strikes. The fire broke out in a transformer at Luma's Monacillo substation in San Juan, according to the company. Thousands were left in the dark on Thursday after a fire broke out at the Monacillo power plant in the San Juan area of Puerto Rico. Outage Scale: 0% 10% 30% 60% 100% . This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. The outage was one of the biggest in recent months for the islands crumbling electrical grid, which has seen its periodic blackouts grow worse the last few years. In February 2021, OPALCO brought their new solar array and battery energy storage system online, based on Decatur Island. The electricity has been restored to the San Juan Islands. Officials have attributed past power failures to animals one time a cat and in another instance an iguana, according to The Associated Press. The outages have been attributed to mechanical failures. Negociado del Cuerpo de Bomberos All 15,000 San Juan Islands residents have had their power restored following a county-wide outage, according to Orcas Power and Light Co-op (OPALCO). Closest hotels to Carnival Cruise Ship Port. But even before Thursday's blackout, more than 1 million customers lost power just this month alone, not counting those affected by the substation fire, according to The Associated Press. 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