Blackout hits Puerto Rico as power company reached goal

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FILE - In this Sept. 28, 2017, file photo, debris scatters a destroyed community in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Toa Alta, Puerto Rico. The Senate is pushing ahead on a $36.5 billion hurricane relief package that would give Puerto Rico a much-needed infusion of cash but rejects requests from the powerful Texas and Florida congressional delegations for additional money to rebuild after hurricanes Harvey and Irma. The measure is sure to sail through a Monday, Oct. 23, procedural vote and a final vote is expected no later than Tuesday. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A major blackout hit Puerto Rico’s most populated region on Wednesday just as the government announced it had met its goal of 50 percent power generation nearly two months after Hurricane Maria struck as a Category 4 storm.

The Electric Power Authority said it dispatched crews to investigate why a key 230 kilovolt line that connects the island’s northern and southern regions had failed for the second time in a week.

The blackout affected the capital of San Juan and nearby cities and towns along the U.S. territory’s north coast, provoking a groan from people who were celebrating the return of electricity in recent weeks by restocking refrigerators and charging phones and computers.

A previous blackout involving the same line occurred on Nov. 8.

On social media, some Puerto Ricans wondered whether the blackout was caused by the government’s rush to meet its goals to restore power. Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello has pledged 95 percent power generation by Dec. 15, while the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has said it expects 75 percent power generation by the end of January.

Susan Tierney, a senior advisor for Denver-based consulting company Analysis Group who testified last month before a U.S. Senate committee on efforts to restore power, said blackouts are likely to occur if a power company is having problems matching supply and demand.

“Something has to give,” she said in a phone interview, adding that she is surprised at how slowly power is being restored across the U.S. territory. “It’s extraordinary to have an outage that has extended this deeply and for so long after an event.”

More than 130,000 people have fled the island since the hurricane, with many seeking jobs and shelter on the U.S. mainland.

Prior to Wednesday’s blackout, the power company said 21 municipalities still had no power at all, and portions of Puerto Rico’s 57 other municipalities had seen electricity restored.

The island’s power outage was the worst in U.S. history.