Politics
U.S. waives Jones Act to supply diesel fuel to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Fiona
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the law was temporarily waived “in response to urgent and immediate needs of the Puerto Rican people”
September 29, 2022 4:26am
Updated: September 29, 2022 9:19am
The U.S. government announced on Wednesday that it would temporarily waive a federal law and allow foreign diesel fuel deliveries to Puerto Rico as the island deals with the devastation left behind by Hurricane Fiona, which struck earlier this month.
The announcement comes one day after Puerto Rico Governor Pedro Pierluisi requested U.S. President Joe Biden to temporarily suspend the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 “for the benefit of our people.” Known as the Jones act, the law requires that all goods shipped between American ports be transported to the island on a U.S.-built ship that is owned and crewed by American citizens.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the law was temporarily waived “in response to urgent and immediate needs of the Puerto Rican people” so they could have “sufficient diesel to run generators needed for electricity and the functioning critical facilities as they recover from Hurricane Fiona.”
Hurricane Fiona left the island running low on diesel supplies. Governor Pierluisi sent his request as a British Petroleum (BP) ship with 300,000 barrels of diesel near Puerto Rico’s southern coast since Sunday.
More than 311,000 out of 1.47 million clients remain without power in Puerto Rico more than ten days after the category 1 storm hit the island. Fuel disruptions have caused stores, businesses, and gas stations to close.
Luma, a private company that provides and distributes power in Puerto Rico, said on Wednesday that it would take at least another week to restore electricity to 90% of its customers.
“Hurricane Fiona severely impacted critical parts of the electric grid and generation facilities across Puerto Rico, especially in the Ponce and Mayagüez regions that suffered severe damage to roads and critical infrastructure,” the company said.
"We are grateful to the Biden administration for taking this action and will deliver the barrels into Puerto Rico as quickly and safely as possible," a BP spokesman said Wednesday.
