Between September 19–21, 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated the island of Puerto Rico, leaving a major humanitarian crisis. Maria was the strongest storm to impact the island in nearly 90 years. Prior to reaching Puerto Rico, Maria became a Category 5 hurricane. It was downgraded to a high-end Category 4 hurricane by the time it made landfall on September 20. It brought a large storm surge, heavy rains, and wind gusts well above . It flattened neighborhoods, crippled the island's power grid, and caused an estimated 2,982 fatalities and US$90 billion in damage.

Background

Before landfall

Maria began as a tropical depression on September 16, about east of Barbados. Conditions favorable for hurricane activity allowed the storm to strengthen throughout the day, and a convective burst propelled Maria to hurricane strength late on September 17. Over the next 24 hours, Maria explosively strengthened to Category 5 status east-southeast of Dominica, before making landfall there early on September 19. Despite some weakening, Maria reached peak intensity early on September 20 while roughly south of St. Croix, with maximum sustained winds of and a minimum central pressure of .

Maria made its closest approach to St. Croix around 05:00 UTC on September 20. It passed within of the island; the storm's outer eyewall lashed the island, but the inner eyewall remained offshore. Hours later, the outer eyewall hit Vieques, an island off of Puerto Rico's eastern coast. By this time, an eyewall replacement cycle had caused Maria to weaken to Category 4 strength. Maria made landfall, just south of Yabucoa, around 10:15 UTC, with sustained winds of and a central pressure of . It was the second-strongest recorded hurricane to hit the island, surpassed only by the 1928 San Felipe Segundo hurricane, the only Category 5 storm to have struck Puerto Rico.

Infrastructure and recession The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), had $9 billion in debt before the hurricane. Aging infrastructure across the island left the grid susceptible to storm damage; the median age of PREPA power plants was 44 years. The company's safety record was inadequate. Local newspapers frequently described poor maintenance and outdated controls.

In the decade preceding Maria, Puerto Rico suffered from financial decline and crippling debt from poor fiscal management. Early in 2017, the territory filed for bankruptcy as its public debt reached $74 billion. A change in taxation policy prompted an exodus of successful businesses and reduced tax revenue. Unemployment rates rose to 45%.

Preparations

Forecasts of Hurricane Maria's track from the National Hurricane Center proved to be "highly accurate", with the agency's second advisory—issued on September 16—predicting it would strike Puerto Rico as a major hurricane.

Evacuation orders were issued in advance of Maria, and officials announced that 450 shelters would open on the afternoon of September 18. As of September 19, at least 2,000 people had sought shelter.

Hospitals had emergency preparedness protocols in place to ensure safe staffing levels during storms. Residency programs organized teams and faculty members who would stay at the hospitals until the emergency passed. Food and sleeping quarters were prepared, and some faculty family members were allowed to shelter there.

The FEMA internal after-action report outlined preparation problems. This included emergency supply warehouses that housed cots and tarps that were nearly empty. FEMA also reported that it was understaffed, relying on staff who were unqualified for such disaster work. Staff and supplies had been sent to other places at the time. FEMA had only 12,000 tarps at the time of the storm, inadequate given that nearly half a million houses were destroyed. The report also found that the most recent disaster planning assessment that FEMA had run for Puerto Rico was in 2012, and "'underestimated the actual requirements of 2017' In particular, the plans 'did not address insufficiently maintained infrastructure (e.g., the electrical grid... financial liquidity challenges' facing the Puerto Rican government."

Impact

Maria made landfall on Wednesday, September 20. Sustained winds of , with gusts up to , were reported in San Juan shortly before landfall. After landfall, gusts of were reported at Yabucoa Harbor, and gusts of at Camp Santiago. A minimum barometric pressure reading of was reported in Yabucoa. Heavy rainfall occurred throughout the territory, peaking at in Caguas. Widespread flooding, waist-deep in some areas, affected San Juan, and numerous structures lost their roofs. San Juan's coastal La Perla neighborhood was largely destroyed. Cataño saw extensive damage, while the Juana Matos neighborhood estimated to be 80% destroyed. Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, San Juan's primary airport, reopened on September 22.

Extensive damage occurred to hundreds of thousands of buildings due to the high winds, heavy rainfall, storm surge, wave action and landslides. Governor Ricardo Rosselló estimated that over 300,000 homes had been destroyed and many more damaged. Other estimates included 166,000 residential buildings damaged or destroyed and 472,000 housing units destroyed or with major damage.

Storm surge inundation as high as above ground level occurred along the southeastern coast, and flash flooding stemming from floodgate releases at La Plata Lake Dam converged on the town of Toa Baja, trapping thousands of residents. Survivors stated that flood waters rose at least in 30 minutes, reaching a depth of in some areas. More than 2,000 people were rescued by the military there. At least eight people died while many were missing.

The hurricane devastated the power grid, leaving all 3.4 million residents without electricity. Communication networks were crippled. Ninety-five percent of cell networks were down with 48 of the island's 78 counties' networks rendered inoperable. Eighty-five percent of above-ground phone and internet cables were knocked out. Only one radio station, WAPA 680 AM, remained on-air through the storm.

The NEXRAD Doppler weather radar was destroyed. The radome, which covers the radar antenna, was destroyed in the winds, and the wide radar dish was blown from the pedestal (which remained intact). The radar is located at an elevation of and the anemometer at the site measured winds of about before communications broke, likely 20 percent higher than what was seen at sea level, possibly reaching Category 5 levels...

Vieques suffered similar damage. Communications were largely lost. Property damage was widespread and many structures were leveled. The remaining structures on the island of Culebra were vulnerable to Maria's winds having recently experienced major damage due to Hurricane Irma. Many wooden houses were lost, along with blown-off roofs and sunken boats.

The recreational boat Ferrel, carrying a family of four, issued a distress signal while battling waters and winds on September 20. Communications with the vessel were lost near Vieques on September 20. The United States Coast Guard, United States Navy, and British Royal Navy conducted search-and-rescue operations utilizing an HC-130 aircraft, a fast response cutter, , and Navy helicopters. On September 21, the mother and her two children were rescued; the father drowned inside the capsized ship.

Maria's Category 4 winds broke a line feed antenna at Arecibo Observatory. It fell , puncturing the dish below and greatly reducing its functionality until repairs could be made.

Maria caused many factories to close, including factories that made and exported intravenous infusion bags. This led to a shortage of bags on the mainland, exacerbating an H3N2 outbreak that killed at least 30 children.

Damage estimates and economic impact

Rosselló estimated that Maria caused at least US$ 90 billion in damage, far more than the $8B from Hurricane Georges.Approximately 80% of the territory's agriculture was destroyed; losses were estimated at $780 million. Plantain, banana and coffee farms were severely damaged; more than 90% of poultry was destroyed.

Psychological impacts

Many people were not equipped to handle the damage overcome by hopelessness and helplessness. Food and potable water were hard to come by even months after the storm. Blackouts envelopedthe island, including at hospitals. Patients noted that services were lmited, while healthcare providers called out the Puerto Rican government. New and expectant mothers experienced greater health issues in an environment that allowed pathogens and environmental toxins to thrive.

Suicide rates spiked, especially among the elderly. Cases of depression increased while post-traumatic stress disorder was common. The number of indirect deaths greatly surpassed that of direct deaths, also surpassing Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, which made landfall around the same time.

Anxiety was high among survivors, led by fear of health issues and injuries. On the western side of the island, it was rumored that water was pumped by AAA to homes from Guajataca reservoir. The damage and rumors that the lake was going to run dry increased anxiety levels. When water service finally returned, it was unreliable and many depended on bottled water for long periods.

Gender-based violence The long lines to access vital resources left women vulnerable to sexual harassment, while the lack of government resources for employment and housing made it difficult for women facing domestic abuse to escape, increasing the incidence of intimate partner violence. In 2018, the intimate partner violence rate more than doubled to 1.7 per 100,000 women, with a record 23 IPV murder victims, compared to a rate of only 0.77 in 2017.

Mortality +Reported Deaths by Month and Year201720162015September2,8382,3662,242October2,1192,3532,379Total (September and October)4,9574,7194,621

In the following months, media outlets, politicians, and investigative journalists questioned the official death toll of 64. A two-week investigation in November 2017 by CNN of 112 funeral homes—approximately half of the island—reported 499 hurricane-related deaths between September 20 and October 19. Funeral homes became so overwhelmed by the number of bodies that in one instance a facility director in Vega Alta died from a stress-induced heart attack. Scientists Alexis Santos and Jeffrey Howard estimated the death toll to be 1,085 by the end of November 2017. They utilized average monthly deaths and the "excess" fatalities immediately following. The value only included reported deaths. By the end of November, the Puerto Rican government maintained that their report of 55 fatalities was the most accurate. The New York Times indicated an increase of 1,052 fatalities in the 42 days following Maria compared to previous years. Significant spikes in death reports compared to the two preceding Septembers included sepsis (+47%), pneumonia (+45%), emphysema (+43%), diabetes (+31%), and Alzheimer's and Parkinson's (+23%). Robert Anderson at the National Center for Health Statistics reported that the increase in monthly fatalities was statistically significant.

By mid-December Governor Rossello ordered a recount and new analysis of the official death toll. On August 28, 2018, the Government of Puerto Rico revised the official death toll to be 2,975 people, ranking Maria as one of the deadliest hurricanes in United States history. The official estimate is based on a study commissioned by the governor.

Aftermath

Infrastructure and utilities