How to rebuild Puerto Rico

It's time to take climate change seriously

A man tries to rebuild his house after Hurricane Maria in Canovanas, Puerto Rico.
(Image credit: REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins)

If America learns anything from the disaster in Puerto Rico, it should be this: Prepare. Prepare. Prepare.

When Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico as a powerful category four storm on Sept. 20, it knocked out power for the vast majority of the island and killed at least 36 people. Three weeks later, more than one-third of Puerto Rico remains without clean drinking water and the overwhelming majority of the island still doesn't have electricity. It's a humanitarian emergency — and one that was eminently preventable.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Nathalie Baptiste

Nathalie Baptiste is a journalist based in Washington, D.C. Her work has appeared in Mother Jones, The Nation, and The American Prospect.