A massive blackout struck nearly all of Puerto Rico on New Year’s Eve, leaving over 1.3 million customers without power.

Luma Energy, responsible for electricity transmission, blamed the outage on an underground power line failure and estimated up to two days for full restoration.

The incident intensified public frustration with Luma and Genera PR, prompting Governor-elect Jenniffer González Colón to propose an “energy czar” to address the island’s failing power grid, the Associated Press has reported.

The blackout disrupted businesses, government services, and holiday plans, highlighting ongoing issues with Puerto Rico’s aging infrastructure, still reliant on FEMA generators after Hurricane Maria’s devastation in 2017.

Written by B.C. Begley