The impact of Hurricane Fiona on Puerto Rico's ICT infrastructure

Puerto Rican telecommunications operators experienced difficulties and network outages after Hurricane Fiona hit the island and left 24.4% of cell sites in the affected area out of service, according to US communications commission FCC.

When Hurricane Maria swept the island five years ago, 95% of services were impacted.

Meanwhile, cable and landline companies reported that 650,185 subscribers were without service on Friday, down from over 700,000 on Thursday.

As part of the contingency plan, mobile operators often use temporary installations, roaming agreements or electrical generators to maintain service.

Liberty Latin America and T-Mobile, for example, have announced a signal sharing agreement to ensure connectivity.

“The few (cells) that are not on are because [we’re] unable to put a generator in the area, or because of damage to the generator or fiber cuts caused by landslides, fallen trees and debris caused by Hurricane Fiona,” general manager of Liberty Communications  Naji Khoury was quoted as saying by local media.

According to Claro and Liberty, about 90% of the overall network is operating normally, while 75% of Claro users had internet access.

Power outages are the main causes for telecoms interruptions. Lawmakers deem it necessary to adjust regulations to further facilitate the use of generators, which helped in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.

Five years ago, operators shared generator expenses and together obtained diesel and spare parts to keep towers working.