SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — As a severe drought continues to affect Puerto Rico, the government has decided to introduce water rationing in San Juan and other key cities, with no immediate end in sight.
Starting Friday, over 180,000 customers will experience 48-hour water cuts on a rotating basis. This comes as Puerto Rico struggles to manage the escalating crisis amid persistent extreme heat warnings.
“This situation is out of our hands,” stated Gov. Jenniffer González on Tuesday, attributing the crisis to adverse weather conditions. “Nothing prevents this from worsening.”
July marked the driest month in over 120 years for San Juan and was also the second hottest month recorded for the capital.
According to the US Drought Monitor, nearly 25% of Puerto Rico faces severe drought, with an additional 36% experiencing moderate drought conditions.
Experts, including María Novoa García from the National Weather Service in San Juan, have forecasted a milder hurricane season for 2026, with dry conditions expected to last until at least September.
Rainfall is predicted to be at least 50% below average in the coming two to three weeks, she added.
“We are seeing that El Niño continues to get stronger,” she explained, referring to the natural warming cycle.
Besides San Juan, the rationing will impact areas in Carolina, Juncos, Gurabo, Trujillo Alto, Canovanas, and Loiza.
The governor mentioned uncertainty regarding the duration of these measures.
Luis González Delgado, president of Puerto Rico’s water and sewer system, indicated that large trucks would deliver potable water, prioritizing hospitals and elderly residences.
Tania Conde Sterling, president of Puerto Rico’s Association of Health Services Administrators, urged calm on Wednesday, stressing that hospitals and health centers are prepared for the rationing.
“We do not improvise at hospitals,” she emphasized. “We have manuals of rules and procedures, as well as protocols for every type of scenario.”
The drought’s severity is increasing, yet many Puerto Ricans had already faced water shortages for up to a year for unknown reasons.
Among those affected is Marcia Soler París, a 61-year-old community leader, who expressed that the new rationing measures change little as her area has already been suffering severe water shortages for months.
“It’s chaos,” she remarked, questioning how residents are expected to prepare for rationing when there’s already no water. “It’s truly pitiful.”
She voiced particular concern for bedridden and elderly individuals who cannot transport heavy water containers to their residences.
Unrelated to the drought, San Juan Mayor Miguel Romero filed a lawsuit against the island’s Water and Sewer Authority in late May, acknowledging that the agency’s infrastructure has suffered from decades of inadequate investment and maintenance.
Puerto Rico Rep. Domingo J. Torres García warned on Wednesday of potential legal action if he does not receive an explanation from the water and sewer authority regarding the ongoing water issues.
“The people have the right to know what is happening, what the plans are and what concrete actions are being taken to address this crisis,” he stated.
Puerto Rico has previously implemented water rationing in 2020 and 2015, during which about 400,000 customers had access to water only every third day.
