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Puerto Ricans protest outside La Fortaleza during a massive blackout in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, … More on April 16, 2025. A major electricity outage struck Puerto Rico after all power plants in the US territory were knocked offline, utility companies said — the latest huge outage to hit the Caribbean island. (Photo by Jaydee Lee Serrano / AFP) AFP via Getty Images Puerto Rico is in the dark—literally and figuratively. On New Year’s Eve 2024, the lights went out across the island while families prepared to celebrate. Roughly 1.4 million customers lost power. Just four months later, during Holy Week, it happened again within the past 72 hours––another island-wide blackout crippled electricity and water service for millions. In San Juan, traffic lights failed, businesses shuttered, and families scrambled to preserve food and care for loved ones. These blackouts aren’t anomalies—they’re symptoms of a broken, mismanaged grid that’s been on life support since Hurricane María. And while Puerto Ricans face sweltering nights and stalled businesses, their governor is picking a fight with American energy producers. Instead of rebuilding the grid, newly elected Republican Governor Jenniffer González-Colón is pressing ahead with a climate lawsuit against oil and gas producers. Filed last year by her predecessor, Democratic Governor Pedro Pierluisi, the lawsuit seeks at least $1 billion in damages from energy companies—accusing them of allegedly deceiving the public about the risks of fossil fuels and contributing to climate change. Let’s be clear—the lawsuit won’t bring back the power. It won’t deliver a single kilowatt-hour to a hospital, school, or home. What it will do is tie up taxpayer resources in a years-long legal circus while Puerto Ricans sit in the dark. Even if this lawsuit were to succeed—a big “if”—any payout would be decades away. In the meantime, it does nothing…

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Filed under: News - @ April 19, 2025 10:20 pm