Puerto Rico news

[Climbtoo]

Just received a text from the owner of a Endeavor 42 we looked at and sailed 3 weeks ago in Puerto Rico. (We really like the boat). Maria sunk her at the dock with 4 others in Sun Bay. Also reported that 48 boats were sunk in Puerto del Rey.

[redhead]

How sad. I lived there back in the 80's and there was just little to no emergency planning. But a wonderful place with wonderful people.

[watermanmax]

Just talked to Captain Dan at Marina Puerto Del Rey, his boats are ok.....but the very next one next to him was not just sunk, but split.

[Hakuna Matata]

I'm surprised any boats weathered that storm. What about the marinas themselves? Any idea how they fared?

[CSY Man]

Originally Posted by redhead

How sad. I lived there back in the 80's and there was just little to no emergency planning. But a wonderful place with wonderful people.

I lived there in the 80s as well, for a few months.
Easy going place but being in the middle of the hurricane belt it should not be a big surprise that a direct hit would be coming soon, and it did..surprise.
Now the place has fallen apart and people are dying. Sad.

After Puerto Rico I lived aboard on St.Croix for a few years. Sold the boat and moved off the island just before hurricane Hugo. Timing is everything, so is luck.

[redhead]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

I lived there in the 80s as well, for a few months.
Easy going place but being in the middle of the hurricane belt it should not be a big surprise that a direct hit would be coming soon, and it did..surprise.
Now the place has fallen apart and people are dying. Sad.

After Puerto Rico I lived aboard on St.Croix for a few years. Sold the boat and moved off the island just before hurricane Hugo. Timing is everything, so is luck.

We were there at the same time. I lived in Isla Verde from 81-87 when I transferred to NY (at my own expense) only to have Hugo knock the socks off the airport a year later. My company paid to have everyone moved to NY!!! Typical of my timing throughout my life.

In 86 (?) Hurricane David was headed right for PR. I showed my neighbor the satellite pictures showing how inevitable it was. She laughed at me and said the island was under the protection of Santa Barbara and it wouldn't hit us. I continued to prepare. She was lighting candles and praying. David went north of us and then back south to hit Dominican Republic reinforcing her belief. I'm not trying to make any point except that she was unshakable in her belief. I think that has a lot to do with it. Like people living happily in earthquake zones year after year and then surprised when it happens.

PR is where I fell in love with sailing though. What an adventure for a girl from a small town in upper NY.

[Island Time O25]

Over the weekend was in the company of a friend of a friend who is from PR and still has very extensive family there. He says things are much worse than what the media reports here. Drivers lucky enough to have any gas in their tanks are getting stopped at gun point and while the car is idling the rest of the gang plunges a hose into their gas tank and siphons the gas out. Only 3,700 troops are sent so far to an island of 3.5mil people. Local LEOs are no shows. The loading docks are full of containers with food and necessities but the truck drivers want double and triple rates to move them out. The gov. doesn't want to pay the extortion rates nor does he have the budget to do so. So things are left to rot as more rains are coming down. According to that guy the local gov't is either a no show or hindering any help by their bribery demands, etc.

Have no reason to doubt him as he's a vet with 8 years of service, very patriotic and so forth.

[Hakuna Matata]

My father is from a small mountain village in Puerto Rico. No power, no water, no communication. But at least up there I can tell you it is a very different story. Yes it has been devastating, but people are helping each other however they can. There are a few reports of looting and people stealing gas (generally in the cities I believe), but that is a very small part of what is happening on that beautiful island. I have been communicating directly with many people on the island (mostly on a walkie-talkie app called Zello) and despite what has happened they still are hopeful and kind.

My husband and I will first fly there to offer medical relief in the next week or so and then as a family we will sail there as soon as the weather safely allows it. I am wondering what marinas, if any, survived the storm.

[CSY Man]

The news channels are reporting truck drivers not showing up for work or demanding double pay to distribute fuel and goods.
Talked to a friend today with a factory in Puert Rico having to buy fuel at the black market for exorbitant prices and one of the managers got robbed for $25k trying to bring cash to pay the employees.
Seems like the Puerto Rican’s are not helping, instead making it worse.

[Hakuna Matata]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

The news channels are reporting truck drivers not showing up for work or demanding double pay to distribute fuel and goods.

Talked to a friend today with a factory in Puert Rico having to buy fuel at the black market for exorbitant prices and one of the managers got robbed for $25k trying to bring cash to pay the employees.

Seems like the Puerto Rican’s are not helping, instead making it worse.

Wow! Nothing like judging an entire country by a few bad apples. I imagine any nation judged in a time of crisis by the worst of her people would fail this test.

I know what the news says, but that is a small sliver of the picture.

[Palarran]

I've watched some video of the marinas. Puerto del Ray looked in good shape. Palmas del Mar had about 10 boats sunk and all the masts were blown off the sailboats. I hope we can get some first hand news here about the marinas.

[Iaangus]

Originally Posted by Hakuna Matata

Wow! Nothing like judging an entire country by a few bad apples. I imagine any nation judged in a time of crisis by the worst of her people would fail this test.

I know what the news says, but that is a small sliver of the picture.

That seems to be the way it goes these days with any crisis, The media plays it up for ratings and the end result is hatred.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by Palarran

I've watched some video of the marinas. Puerto del Ray looked in good shape. Palmas del Mar had about 10 boats sunk and all the masts were blown off the sailboats. I hope we can get some first hand news here about the marinas.

All the masts were blown off?
For the life of me, I would not have expected that my bare mast would be blown off prior to other catastrophic events happening to the Boat first?

[model 10]

Broken off is more likely.

[redhead]

Has anyone heard about the marina in Salinas on the south of the island? Can't find anything.