- A widespread power outage plunged Puerto Rico into darkness on Wednesday, April 16, disrupting essential services and prompting public outrage. Officials linked the blackout to a failed protection system and vegetation interference on a key transmission line.
- The outage crippled water systems, halted transit and impacted over 1.4 million electricity customers during the island’s busy Holy Week.
- Puerto Rico’s governor pledged to terminate the power grid contract with Luma Energy and launched a formal investigation into the system failure.
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Puerto Rico experienced a full island-wide blackout on Wednesday, April 16, leaving more than 1.4 million customers without power. The outage hit during Holy Week, when tourists arrived for Easter weekend.
Authorities traced the start of the blackout to 12:38 p.m., when a disturbance affected the island’s transmission system. Initial findings pointed to a failed protection system and likely vegetation interference on a western Puerto Rico transmission line.
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The outage impacted critical infrastructure, including hospitals, the international airport, water service and public transportation. At least 328,000 customers lost access to water.
San Juan’s transit system shut down, stranding passengers, while businesses, traffic signals and fuel stations struggled to stay open. By nightfall, crews had only restored a fraction of the power.
How have officials responded to the crisis?
Puerto Rican Gov. Jenniffer González returned early from vacation and condemned the failure, calling it unacceptable. She pledged to terminate the government’s contract with Luma Energy, which manages transmission and distribution. However, she acknowledged finding a replacement would take time.
The administration also launched an investigation into the outage and warned that the island’s generation capacity may fall short during the summer.
No hay palabras que alivien la frustración que sentimos como pueblo ante otro apagón masivo.
— Jenniffer González (@Jenniffer) April 17, 2025
Estoy con ustedes, porque el pueblo de Puerto Rico se merece que sus funcionarios atiendan en los momentos de crisis, y por eso estoy aquí.
¡Mi compromiso es con ustedes y aquí estoy,… pic.twitter.com/R1qXZ5icV7
Luma Energy and Genera PR, which manages power generation, said full restoration could take up to 72 hours. Both companies noted that they have improved their restart systems, which could speed up recovery compared to previous blackouts.
The incident marks the latest in a series of island-wide outages since Hurricane Maria struck in 2017.
What challenges have residents and businesses faced?
The outage left thousands of Puerto Ricans and visitors scrambling for emergency resources. Businesses without generators closed, people rushed to buy ice and fuel and traffic snarled due to darkened intersections. Hotels operated on backup generators to accommodate tourists during the holiday week. Sports events were canceled, and smoke from generators filled city streets.
Over 40% of the population lives below the poverty line, so many residents cannot afford backup power systems. The island’s energy mix remains heavily reliant on petroleum, followed by natural gas, coal and a small share of renewables. About 117,000 homes and businesses have solar rooftops.
What happens next and what’s the long-term outlook?
Federal agencies, including the White House, offered support to Puerto Rico following the outage. Acting Gov. Verónica Ferraiuoli confirmed communication with Washington, D.C., while Puerto Rico’s nonvoting congressional delegate Pablo José Hernández pledged to advocate for federal attention to the island’s energy crisis.
Following today’s island-wide power outage, our administration is actively engaged in ongoing communication with the White House and all relevant federal agencies.
— PRFAA (@PRFAA) April 16, 2025
We are working closely with the federal government to ensure that Puerto Rico receives the necessary support and…
Lawmakers warned in a letter to the Trump administration that Puerto Rico may face at least 90 days of power shortfalls between June and October 2025. Residents and public figures, including reggaeton artist Bad Bunny, expressed growing frustration and renewed calls to end contracts with Luma and Genera PR.
Energy officials and political leaders face pressure to address long-standing infrastructure issues and prevent future grid failures.
