'Get Us Out Of Here': Amid Broken Infrastructure, Puerto Ricans Flee To Florida
With more than 80 percent of people still without power in Puerto Rico, thousands are pouring out of the island to find relief on the mainland.
by Isabel Dobrin
Oct 13, 2017
4 minutes
Luis Cruz and Esther Gomez had always considered moving to Florida from Puerto Rico. The weather and proximity made it an ideal destination; plus, the couple had family scattered across the state. They just didn't know when they'd take the big step.
Then Hurricane Maria hit. Three weeks after the storm wiped out the island's power grid, only 17 percent of people have electricity and 64 percent have drinking water.
Though their apartment in Humacao was intact, much of the infrastructure throughout the municipality was damaged, including the school their three children attended, where Gomez was also a teacher.
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