Tag Archive for: hurricanefiona

The green electricity source faces obstacles in Puerto Rico and Florida, where sun power largely held up during Hurricanes Fiona and Ian.

Hurricanes Fiona and Ian gave solar power its time to shine

Solar power withstood the hurricanes that struck Puerto Rico and Florida last month — a fact that could aid the technology’s supporters in lobbying battles around the country.

Hurricanes Fiona and Ian caused catastrophic flooding, knocked out power lines and washed away roads and bridges. But people who could afford solar panels and batteries say those systems kept the lights on during the storms, and even allowed them to share electricity with neighbors left in the dark.

Now, that performance during natural disasters offers ammunition to the solar industry in its lobbying fights with lawmakers, regulators and traditional power companies as renewable energy seeks to accelerate its growing role in the U.S. electricity supply. Such fights have held up solar’s expansion in jurisdictions across the U.S., including in Puerto Rico and Florida.

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Source: POLITICO

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The latest disaster illuminates how much progress Puerto Ricans have made toward energy resilience and how far the island still has to go.

Solar is lifeline in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Fiona knocks out power

Just two days before the five-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria, Puerto Ricans received a brutal reminder of how vulnerable the island’s central electricity system remains. On Sunday, Hurricane Fiona slammed into the U.S. territory, bringing feet of rain and catastrophic flooding. All of the nearly 1.5 million utility customers initially lost power.

In a moment that was a bit too on the nose, Pedro Pierluisi, the governor of Puerto Rico, was briefing residents just ahead of Fiona’s landfall when the power suddenly went out in the conference room. Although service has since been restored to some customers and critical facilities like hospitals, it may take several days to fully restore power due to the ​“magnitude and extent” of the blackout, said Luma Energy, which operates the island transmission and distribution system.

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Source: Canary Media

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