Puerto Rico

Hurricane Maria has already left the streets flooded in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, on Tuesday.

'Potentially Catastrophic' Hurricane Maria Devastates Dominica, Heads For Puerto Rico

9:31pm September 19, 2017

by Merrit Kennedy

The National Hurricane Center warns that the storm now barreling toward the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico is a Category 5 hurricane with winds of around 175 miles per hour.

"The chance of direct impacts is increasing in portions of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina," the National Hurricane Center says of Hurricane Irma.

As Irma Passes Dominican Republic, Florida Girds For The Coming Storm

5:43am September 08, 2017

by Bill Chappell

Down graded to a Category 4, Irma's brutal churn through the Caribbean is aimed at Florida, where the National Hurricane Center says it's more likely to make landfall as a "dangerous major hurricane."

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Seawater rises with the approach of Hurricane Irma, which threatened to overwhelm a jetty in Puerto Rico on Tuesday. The U.S. territory of some 3.4 million people has struggled to pay its debts — even filing earlier this year for a procedure similar to

Irma Portends New Woes For Debt-Stricken Puerto Rico

8:04pm September 06, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

The U.S. territory filed to restructure billions in debt earlier this year. Those economic straits threaten to hobble the island's ability to cope with the effects of the Category 5 hurricane.

A Category 5 storm, Hurricane Irma's "extremely dangerous core" is moving over parts of the U.S. Virgin Islands and heading for Puerto Rico.

National

Hurricane Irma Pushes Toward Puerto Rico, With Florida In Its Sights

5:31pm September 06, 2017

by Bill Chappell

The strongest storm ever recorded in the Atlantic outside of the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico is expected to pass "near or just north of Puerto Rico this afternoon or tonight," forecasters say.

A U.S. flag flies beside a Puerto Rican flag in Old San Juan.

National

Puerto Rico Overwhelmingly Votes On U.S. Statehood In Non-Binding Referendum

9:25pm June 11, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

The debt-racked territory voted to become the 51st state in 2012, but Congress never picked up the result. Puerto Rico voted again Sunday and partial results show most voters support U.S. statehood.

Michelle Flandez's son Inti Perez — pictured at home in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, in 2016 — was born with microcephaly linked to the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

CDC Reveals Sharper Numbers Of Zika Birth Defects From U.S. Territories

6:13pm June 08, 2017

by Richard Harris

About 5 percent of pregnant women infected with Zika in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories last year had babies with birth defects, says the federal health agency. And the risk isn't over.

Puerto Rican nationalist Oscar López Rivera gestures as he is released Wednesday from house arrest in San Juan, Puerto Rico, after 36 years in custody.

Puerto Rican Nationalist Oscar López Rivera Is Released

3:33pm May 17, 2017

by Merrit Kennedy

López Rivera had been in custody since 1981. He was imprisoned over his connection with a militant group that fought for Puerto Rican independence and claimed responsibility for dozens of bombings.

A mural displays notable historical figures and a fading Puerto Rican flag on a dilapidated building in San Juan earlier this month. Between its public-sector debt and money owed pension funds, the U.S. territory is grappling with more than $120 billion i

Puerto Rico Embarks On Historically Huge Debt Protection Hearings

2:31pm May 17, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

Between its public-sector debt and what it owes pension funds, the U.S. territory's bills exceed $120 billion. That makes for some difficult decisions in court, which opened hearings Wednesday.

A Puerto Rican sugar refinery in 1973. In 1964, sugar accounted for almost half of all agricultural sales on the island, and sugar manufacturing accounted for 23 percent of all wages that Puerto Ricans earned. Then, within just a few years, the industry c

National

How Puerto Rico Lost Its Home-Grown Food, But Might Find It Again

10:57am May 13, 2017

by Dan Charles

Amid the wreckage of economic crisis in Puerto Rico, a local food movement is taking root. Hopeful farmers are leasing long-abandoned land. But why was the land abandoned in the first place?

An environmental group finds a high rate of water quality violations in Puerto Rico and calls on officials on the island and in Washington to invest in safety improvements.

Nearly All Puerto Rico Tap Water Violates Safety Standards, Says Environmental Group

7:38pm May 10, 2017

by Greg Allen

A Natural Resources Defense Defense Council study finds the island has the highest rate of drinking water violations in the U.S. The group calls for investment in upgrades.