Around 101,000 still without power in Puerto Rico two weeks after Hurricane Fiona

Around 101,000 homes and businesses were still without power in Puerto Rico on Wednesday, more than two weeks after Hurricane Fiona devastated the island.

Hurricane Fiona slammed Puerto Rico on September 18 bringing heavy rains and floods, knocking out all of the power for the island’s 3.3 million people, and killing at least 25 individuals.

According to PowerOutage.us, around 101,000 customers in Puerto Rico were still without power as of Wednesday. The number is lower than the 109,000 reported on Tuesday by Luma Energy, which operates the island’s grid.

While the process to restore power to the island has been slower, authorities believe it will be faster than when Hurricane Maria also hit Puerto Rico five years ago, leaving almost 1.5 million customers without power for a week.

It took Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), which operated the grid, almost 11 months after the category 4 storm hit the island to restore power to all customers.

To help the island deal with the destruction of Hurricane Fiona, a category 1 storm, U.S. President Joe Biden promised to deliver a $60 million relief package.

“I’m determined to help Puerto Rico build faster than in the past and stronger, better prepared for the future,” Biden said.

After Puerto Rico, Hurricane Fiona hit eastern Canada on September 24, leaving more than a third of Nova Scotia without power. As of Wednesday, 7,700 customers in Canada were still without power, according to Nova Scotia Power, a unit of Canadian energy company Emera Inc.