By The Star Staff
Some 20 members of the island House of Representatives questioned LUMA Energy executives on Wednesday during a public hearing of the House Energy Committee in which the private consortium that operates Puerto Rico’s electric power transmission and distribution system gave assurances that by this Friday the municipalities most affected by the lack of electricity after the nearby passage of Tropical Storm Ernesto should have the service restored.
LUMA Energy President & CEO Juan Saca, along with engineer Juan Rodríguez, said that as of Wednesday morning there were some 13,500 clients without service related to the effects of Ernesto. Meanwhile, more than 17,700 clients did not have service due to scheduled improvements.
“How can we explain that, since last Friday, when LUMA announced that the system was 90 percent restored, today, Wednesday, 100 percent has not been restored?” asked Rep. Jesús Hernández Arroyo, who chairs the Energy Committee.
“What we are seeing and what we will continue to see in the coming days are jobs that can be highly complex, that we can have 10 groups working on them, without fear of being wrong in what I am saying,” said González, LUMA’s director of operations. “And the work, when we finish carrying it out, we may impact five or 10 clients in a remote area that is difficult to access.”
“Always, historically, the last five percent, normally in experience, takes the longest specifically for that reason,” he added.
One week after the storm, the municipalities of Fajardo, Luquillo, Río Grande, Orocovis and Maricao were the most affected due to significant distribution infrastructure challenges, the LUMA officials said.
Data provided in a presentation during the public hearing showed that the Carolina region continues to be the most affected with the lowest number of clients with restored electrical service, representing 93.6%.
Amid complaints about communication failures, Saca guaranteed that there is no guideline for restricting the information provided to legislators during emergency situations.
Attorney José Pérez, a legal representative of LUMA Energy, noted that since last Wednesday there had been 1,600 interactions or communications with mayors. He acknowledged that communication with legislators has been limited, however.
“I have two communities in Orocovis -- Pellejas and Mata de Cañas -- that have zero percent electricity service seven days after the emergency, and the mayor of Orocovis probably still does not have precise details of when the lines will be working,” Hernández Arroyo said.
“In the 78 municipalities of this country, that was the greatest concern of all the mayors, that there was never an efficient, effective communication, and that every time they were told something, it created greater uncertainty. This generated, in a certain way, panic, frustration,” the lawmaker added.
Uncertain numbers reported
Rep. Jesús Hernández Concepción said there are sectors in the San Juan region that still do not have electricity service at a time when LUMA Energy certifies that 100% of the subscribers in that region already have electricity.
“On Filipinas Street, in Country Club, and four other streets have been without electricity since last Tuesday, a little before the storm arrived. “That means that your metrics are not real,” the legislator said. “These are the people you have to think about when you talk about 90 percent having light so that you know that this is not excellent service.”
Saca said the company has 1,116 line workers who perform various tasks that, for LUMA Energy, are comparable to the custodians of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (AEE). He pointed out that the field employees have been active in the restoration of electrical service after the storm.
“Those who are lacking [electricity service] are our priority and we are working hard to reach 100 percent,” Saca said. “For a while it will not be possible to reach 100 percent [...] due to the problems we have in the system and that we are in the process of solving.”
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