HURRICANE FIONA STRENGTHENING AS IT SETS ITS
SIGHTS ON ANOTHER BATCH OF ISLANDS.
BUT AS IT MOVES PAST PUERTO RICO AND THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, THE
DAMAGE IS DEVASTATING. LOOK AT THOSE IMAGES.
IN PUERTO RICO TWO PEOPLE ARE DEAD THIS MORNING AFTER MOST OF
THE POWER ON THE ISLAND IS OUT. IT COULD BE DAYS BEFORE IT IS
RESTORED. >> WE'RE LOOKING FOR GASOLINE,
WATER, ICE. ALL OF THE SUPPLIES NECESSARY
FOR GETTING THROUGH THIS. WE WERE HOPING IT WOULDN'T BE SO
BIG. BUT, WELL, IT WAS BIGGER THAN WE
EXPECTED. AND YOU HAVE TO MAKE DO WITH
WHAT YOU HAVE. >> BEEN THROUGH THIS BEFORE.
RESCUERS HAVE SAVED MORE THAN A THOUSAND PEOPLE FROM THE
FLOODWATERS. AS MUCH AS 30 INCHES OF RAIN
FELL ON THE EIISLAND. THAT IS LIKE TWO AND A HALF
FEET. THEY TRY TO GET TO PEOPLE IN
MORE HARD TO REACH AREAS. THIS COMES FIVE YEARS, TO THE
DAY AFTER HURRICANE MARIA MADE LANDFALL ON THE U.S. ISLAND.
MANY PEOPLE WHO LIVED THROUGH THAT CATASTROPHE FEAR THE
FALLOUT AND THE AFTERMATH FROM FIONA COULD BE WORSE.
NOW TURKS AND CAICOS, POSSIBLY NEXT IN THE STORM'S PATH.
THE FIRST MAJOR HURRICANE OF THE YEAR EXPECTED TO BECOME A
CATEGORY 4 BY TOMORROW. >> LET'S BRING IN OUR CNN
METEOROLOGIST CHAD MYERS, WHERE IS THE -- WE SEE WHERE THE STORM
IS HEADED BUT WHAT IS IT BRINGING?
HOW BAD. >> IT WENT OVER GRAND TURK.
THAT IS NOT GRACE BAY, THAT IS THE NEXT KIND OF SET OF ISLANDS
OVER. BUT WE DO KNOW THERE IS ALREADY
DAMAGE ON SOUTH CAICOS AND EAST CAICOS.
I'VE BEEN WATCHING VIDEOS OUT OF THE SOME RESORTS, SO FAR SO
GOOD, THEY'RE GETTING WINDS OF 50 TO 60.
THEY COULD HANDLE THAT. AND THE HURRICANE HUNTER FINDING
WIND SPEEDS OF ABOUT 103 TO 115. AND THAT MEANS ROOF OR NO ROOF
LEFT. SO WE ARE GOING TO SEE THIS
CONTINUE TO GATHER STRENGTH. 140 MILE PER HOUR STORM BY
TOMORROW AND WE'RE STILL GOING TO SEE RAIN SHOWERS ACROSS PARTS
OF PUERTO RICO. THE PROBLEM WITH THIS STORM IS
THAT IT WAS MOVING AT 8 MILES PER HOUR.
AND THAT IS HOW YOU GOT SO MUCH FLOODING.
THAT IS HOW YOU GOT 32 INCHES OF RAIN IN PONCE.
THAT IS THE BOTTOM 10% OF HOW FAST STORMS SHOULD BE MOVING
AWAY. JUST DIDN'T WANT TO MOVE AWAY.
IT JUST CONTINUES TO WANT TO RAIN.
A LITTLE BIT OF RAIN TODAY, MAYBE AN INCH OR TWO.
BUT THIS IS NOW MOVED AWAY FROM PUERTO RICO.
MOVING AWAY FROM THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.
NOT SEEING A LOT OF RAIN ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE D.R.
BUT THERE IS THE STORM RIGHT NOW.
NOT SEEING A REALLY DEFINED EYE AND THAT IS GOOD.
THAT MEANS IT IS NOT GAINING RAPID INTENSIFICATION.
BUT HERE IS WHAT IS GOING TO GO ON.
WE'RE GOING TO GET A STORM SURGEON THE CAICOS AND MOVE
TOWARD THE NORTH. AND MAYBE EVEN TOWARD BERMUDA.
YOU'RE IN THE CONE, BERMUDA, BUT NOT IN THE MIDDLE OF IT.
THE MODELS ARE INDICATING A LEFT TURN INTO CANADA.
WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED WITH A DIFFERENT STORM A FEW YEARS AGO
THAT MADE A LEFT TURN. WE DON'T LIKE LEFT TURNS.
>> YEAH. CHAD MYERS, I THINK YOU'RE
TALKING ABOUT SANDY THERE? >> I DIDN'T WANT TO MENTION IT.
>> OKAY, FAIR ENOUGH. BAD MEMORIES.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. WE'
WE'LL BE WATCHING CLOSELY. >>> JOINING ME NOW FROM PUERTO
RICO, SERGIO FLO, SERGIO AND I WENT TO COLLEGE TOGETHER.
IT IS GOOD TO TALK TO YOU THIS MORNING.
>> GOOD TO SEE YOU AN THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.
>> YOU'VE BEEN DEEP ON THIS ISSUE OF PUERTO RICO'S RECOVERY
FROM MARIA BUT ALSO JUST THE BROADER ECONOMIC RECOVERY.
I WANT TO START BY ASKING, HOW ARE PEOPLE DOING THERE RIGHT
NOW? WHAT IS THE SITUATION TODAY AND
DOES IT COMPARE TO WHAT WE SAW FIVE YEARS AGO?
>> WELL, FIRST THING WE HAVE TO REMEMBER IS THAT THE DAMAGE OF
THIS CAUSED BY ANY STORM IS NOT ONLY A FUNCTION OF THE STRENGTH
OF THE STORM, BUT ALSO HOW PREPARED YOU ARE.
HOW VULNERABLE IS THE POPULATION.
AN WE'RE NOT IN THE STRONGEST POSITION TO WEATHER THIS STORM.
RIGHT NOW WE HAVE LIKE AROUND 80% OF THE POPULATION WITHOUT
ELECTRICITY, AROUND 65% WITHOUT WATER.
25% DON'T HAVE CELL PHONE SERVICE.
APPROXIMATELY 2,000 PEOPLE ARE IN SHELTERS AND WE HAVE GOT IN
OVER 30 INCHES OF RAIN IN SOME AREAS AS YOU REPORTED.
SO THERE IS WIDESPREAD FLOODING AND A LOT OF DAMAGE TO ROADS AND
BRIDGES AND COMMERCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND HOMES.
SO WE HAVE OUR WORK CUT OUT FOR US.
SO RELATIVE TO MARIA, THE FACT THAT WE'RE HAVING THIS
CONVERSATION IS PROOF OR EVIDENCE THAT WE HAVE DONE SOME
THINGS RIGHT. BACK THEN FOR EXAMPLE, NOBODY
HAD ACCESS TO CELL PHONE OR INTERNET.
SO WE DID SOME THINGS RIGHT. BUT WE DO HAVE SAY LOT OF WORK
IN FRONT OF US. >> YOU HAVE SAID THAT THE POWER
GRID IN PUERTO RICO, YOU'VE DESCRIBED IT AS FUNCTIONAL BUT
FRAGILE. AND I WONDER, ARE WE SEEING THAT
HERE? THAT THE REPAIRS DONE IN THE
WAKE OF MARIA WERE NOT SUFFICIENT TO PREVENT FOLKS
LOSING POWER AGAIN. >> YES.
DEFINITELY. WHAT HAPPENED AFTER MARIA, WE
FINISHED THE EMERGENCY REPAIRS WHICH TOOK ABOUT A YEAR BY THE
WAY. THEY WERE FINALIZED AROUND
AUGUST OF 2018. AND THEN ON THE SECOND STAGE OF
THE PROCESS WHEN WE START THINKING ABOUT MAKING THE GRID
MORE SILL YENT AND STRENGTHENING IT, WE HAVE A LOT OF IDEAS AND
WE HAD A LOT OF DISCUSSIONS WITH FEMA.
BUT VERY LITTLE PROGRESS MADE DUE TO VERY -- SEVERAL DIFFERENT
REASONS. BUT THE FACT IS THAT THE GRID
HAS A LOT OF PATCHES AND THAT IS WHAT WE'RE SEEING RIGHT NOW.
IT HASN'T BEEN STRENGTHED OR MADE MORE RESILIENT SINCE MARIA.
>> WE HAVE HAD A FORMER STATE SENATOR ON LAST HOUR WHO SAID
THAT OF THE $10 BILLION OR SO GIVEN TO PUERTO RICO POST MARIA,
THAT THE ONLY ABOUT $40 MILLION OF $10 BILLION HAS BEEN SPENT SO
FAR. HE BLAMED RED TAPE AND SAID THAT
A LOT OF THAT BURDEN FALLS ON PUERTO RICO AND I WONDER IF YOU
AGREE OF THAT. WHY HASN'T MORE OF THAT AID BEEN
SPENT TO HELP PREVENT THESE KIND OF CONSEQUENCES?
>> THAT IS A NUMBER THAT HAS BEEN SPENT ON WHAT FEMA CALLS
PERMANENT WORKS, LONG-TERM PROJECTS TO STRENGTHEN THE GRID.
AND I THINK THERE IS A LOT -- THERE IS A LOT OF BLAME TO GO
AROUND. PART OF IT IS ON PUERTO RICO.
PART OF IT IS ON, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT --
>> YEAH. >> AND ALSO THERE IS A LACK OF
AGREEMENT HOW TO PRECISELY REBUILD THE GRADE TO MAKE IT
MORE RESILIENCE. THIS IS A BIG DEBATE.
AND THIS IS HAPPENED EVERYWHERE, BETWEEN RENEWABLES AND NATURAL
GAS. THE FOSSIL FUELS LOBBY IS STRONG
EVERYWHERE. SO IT IS NOT A SURPRISE THAT
WE'RE FACING A LOT OF PRESSURE JUST TO REBUILD TO MAKE THE
SYSTEM MORE RESILIENT. WHILE TAKING INTO ACCOUNT
CLIMATE CHANGE. >> WHAT DO FOLKS NEED MOST RIGHT
NOW? I'M SURE A LOT OF FOLKS WATCHING
OUR AIR NOW ARE SEEING PEOPLE IN NEED.
WHAT IS MOST URGENT? >> WELL MOST URGENT IS TO GET
WATER, FOOD AND ANY MEDICAL TREATMENT TO PEOPLE THAT ARE
LIVING IN ISOLATED COMMUNITIES. WE NEED TO WORK ON THE DEBRIS
REMOVAL, OPEN ROADS, MAKE SURE THAT IT IS SAFE TO MOVE AROUND
THE ISLAND. FINISH ANY EMERGENCY RESCUE
OPERATIONS THAT NEED TO BE FINISHED.
AS YOU SAW FROM THE VISUALS, THERE IS A LOT OF FLOODING.
STILL IN THE ISLAND, WE'RE EXPECTING SOME MORE RAIN SOON.
SO, THOSE ARE TOP OF MIND RIGHT NOW TO ME IN TERMS OF WHAT NEEDS
TO BE DONE IMMEDIATELY. >> SERGIO, WE APPRECIATE THE
WORK YOU'RE DOING IN PUERTO RICO.
WE WISH YOU AND THE PEOPLE THERE THE VERY BEST.