The unusual seismic activity and strong aftershocks have delayed recovery efforts, caused a spike in people staying in government shelters and unleashed panic
By Danica Coto ••
NBCUniversal, Inc.
Powerful earthquakes and aftershocks in southern Puerto Rico have left several buildings in ruins. NBC 6’s Sheli Muniz reports from Guanica.
A magnitude 6.0 quake shook Puerto Rico on Saturday, causing further damage along the island’s southern coast, where previous recent quakes have toppled homes and schools.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake hit 8 miles (13 kilometers) south of Indios at a shallow depth of 6 miles (10 kilometers).
Puerto Rico's Electric Power Authority said outages were reported across much of southern Puerto Rico and crews were assessing possible damage at power plants.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
It was the strongest shake yet since a magnitude 6.4 quake struck before dawn on Tuesday, knocking out power across the island and leaving many without water. More than 2,000 people remain in shelters, many fearful of returning to their homes, and others unable to because of extensive damage.
U.S. Geological Survey
The tremors follow days of uncertainty and aftershocks throughout the island.
A new community has popped up in this earthquake-damaged town in southwest Puerto Rico: it houses 300 people, a dozen police officers and one macaw.
Cries of “Uno!” filled the air early Friday morning as children on cots played card games while men with a pillow under their arm and sleep in their eyes went to work. Many families in this dusty baseball park converted into a makeshift outdoor shelter live nearby. But they can’t or won’t return home because their walls are cracked, their houses have collapsed or they’ve been indefinitely evacuated after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake that prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to declare an emergency in the U.S. territory.
Hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans are still without power and water, and thousands are staying in shelters and sleeping on sidewalks since Tuesday’s earthquake. The tremor killed one person, injured nine others and damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes and several schools and businesses in the island’s southwest region.
The unusual seismic activity and strong aftershocks have delayed recovery efforts, caused a spike in people staying in government shelters like the one in Guayanilla and unleashed panic among thousands of Puerto Ricans.
“I've reached the point where I'm getting on my knees in the street to pray, and I'm even listening to Christian music,” said Irma Vega, a 45-year-old caretaker for the elderly. “It's been 20 years since I've worshipped."
Another aftershock of 4.36-magnitude hit before dawn, causing people in the shelter to yell, “It's shaking! It's shaking!” as some sat upright in their cots. The quakes have also damaged government buildings, including a maximum-security prison in the nearby southern coastal city of Ponce, where officials relocated nearly 200 inmates for their safety.
The ground in southwest Puerto Rico has been shaking since Dec. 28, with more than 1,100 earthquakes, of which 96 have been felt and 66 were of a magnitude 3.5 or greater, according to the island's Seismic Network.
Gavin Hayes, with the U.S. Geological Survey, said the most likely scenario is that aftershocks will continue to decrease in frequency for the next 30 days.
Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
Cars drive through an area heavily affected by a landslide after a powerful earthquake hit the island in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Jan. 12, 2020. A 5.9-magnitude earthquake rocked Puerto Rico on January 11, the latest in a series of powerful tremors that have shaken the U.S. territory in recent days.
Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
People arrive with supplies for affected residents in Guanica, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 12, 2020, after a powerful earthquake hit the island. A 5.9 magnitude earthquake rocked Puerto Rico on January 11, the latest in a series of powerful tremors that have shaken the U.S. territory in recent days.
Xavier Garcia/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A person inspects rubble and destroyed power lines in Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2020. Puerto Rico was hit by a series of earthquakes over the past 15 days, leading to a state of emergency, various power outages and millions of dollars of damage.
Xavier Garcia/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A Caterpillar Inc. excavator sits on a destroyed bridge in Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2020. Puerto Rico was hit by a series of earthquakes over the past 15 days, leading to a state of emergency, various power outages and millions of dollars of damage.
Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
A barber gives free haircuts to people at a shelter in Guanica, Puerto Rico on Jan. 12, 2020, after a powerful earthquake hit the island. A 5.9 magnitude earthquake rocked Puerto Rico on January 11, the latest in a series of powerful tremors that have shaken the U.S. territory in recent days.
Carlos Giusti/AP
William Mercuchi’s house sits damaged after a 6.4 earthquake hit Yauco, Puerto Rico, the day before, as seen in this Jan. 8, 2020, photo.
Carlos Giusti/AP
A building collapses after the previous day’s magnitude 6.4 earthquake in Yauco, Puerto Rico, Jan. 8, 2020. More than 250,000 Puerto Ricans remained without water on Wednesday and another half a million without power.
Carlos Giusti/AP
Maritza Quiñones Rodriguez, 51, cries as she and other neighbors remain outdoors using camping tents and portable lights for fear of possible aftershocks after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck in Guanica, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020.
Carlos Giusti/AP
Paramedics assist a man suffering from seizures as he and neighbors remain outdoors using camping tents and portable lights for fear of possible aftershocks on their first night after an earthquake in Guanica, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020.
Carlos Giusti/AP
Volunteers distribute food to neighbors who remain outdoors using camping tents and portable lights for fear of possible aftershocks after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck in Guanica, Puerto Rico, Jan. 7, 2020.
Carlos Giusti/AP
Neighbors place Martin Velez, 96, on a bed outside a shelter after an earthquake struck in Guanica, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020.
Carlos Giusti/AP
Store owners and family help remove supplies from Ely Mer Mar hardware store, which partially collapsed after an earthquake struck Guanica, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020. A 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck Puerto Rico before dawn on Tuesday, killing one man, injuring others and collapsing buildings in the southern part of the island.
Ricard Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
The Inmaculada Concepcion church, built in 1841, is seen partially collapsed after an earthquake hit the island in Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 7, 2020. A 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit the island – the latest in a series of tremors that have shaken the island since December 28.
Alejandro Granadillo/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
A view of damages at Guanica town after 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit Puerto Rico on Jan. 7, 2020.
Alejandro Granadillo/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
A view of damages at Guanica town after 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit Puerto Rico on Jan. 7, 2020.
Ricard Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
The Inmaculada Concepcion church, built in 1841, is seen partially collapsed after an earthquake hit the island in Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 7, 2020.
Ricard Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
The Inmaculada Concepcion church, built in 1841, is seen partially collapsed after an earthquake hit the island in Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 7, 2020.
RICARDO ARDUENGO
Paramedics carry away an injured patient after a earthquake hit the island in Ponce, Puerto Rico on Jan. 7, 2020. Eight people were hurt from the latest quake, with one man dead.
Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
A man carries a St. Jude statue from the Inmaculada Concepcion church ruins that was built in 1841 and collapsed after an earthquake hit the island in Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 7, 2020. A strong earthquake struck south of Puerto Rico early Tuesday morning – the latest in a series of tremors that have shaken the island since December 28. The shallow 6.4 magnitude quake struck five miles south of the community of Indios, the USGS said.
Carlos Giusti/AP
Debris from a collapsed wall of a building litters the ground after an earthquake struck Puerto Rico before dawn, in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020.
Carlos Giusti/AP
Amir Seneriz, president of the Logia Aurora Organization, inspects damages after an earthquake struck Puerto Rico before dawn, in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020.
Courtesy Fabián Torres
A damaged wall crumbles in Yauco, Puerto Rico, following a 6.4 magnitude earthquake that hit Tuesday morning on Jan. 7, 2019.
Courtesy Fabián Torres
Cracks appeared on a damaged building in Yauco, Puerto Rico, following a 6.4 magnitude earthquake that hit Tuesday morning on Jan. 7, 2019.
Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
San Juan is plunged in darkness after a 6.4 earthquake rattled Puerto Rico early Jan. 7, 2020, leaving the island largely without power.
Courtesy Jesus Ramos
San Juan sits in darkness after power is knocked out following a 6.4 magnitude earthquake that hit Puerto Rico Tuesday morning on Jan. 7, 2019.
Courtesy Jorge Torres Ramos
Products scatter on the floor of a damaged grocery store in San Sebastián, Puerto Rico, after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit Tuesday morning on Jan. 7, 2019.
Telemundo Puerto Rico
A damaged house sits in Guanica, Puerto Rico, after a 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit off the southern coast of Puerto Rico on Monday morning, Jan. 6, 2019.
Telemundo Puerto Rico
Guanica, Puerto Rico, residents survey a felled utility pole after a 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit off the southern coast of Puerto Rico on Monday morning, Jan. 6, 2019.
Meanwhile, government officials are trying to calm and distract people by turning some shelters into a makeshift community. At the baseball park in Guayanilla late Thursday night — the town’s largest one — volunteers played the movie “Dinosaur,” for a dozen small children who sat enraptured and cross-legged as generators roared in the background and the elderly nestled under blankets in the chilly air and tried to sleep.
Nearby, older children kicked up dust as they chased each other on bicycles, prompting volunteers to yell, “Watch out!”
People still trickled into the baseball field close to midnight, including 74-year-old Lydia Ramos. She dragged a small suitcase with her right hand and carried her 10-year-old Chihuahua, “Princess,” in her left as the dog snuggled into a pink blanket.
“Find me a little cot,” she told volunteers as she recounted the recent nights at home. “My home is shaking from side to side... I'm even scared to take a shower... I'm so ready to leave."
Ramos spent the night on an army green cot and left early Friday morning for New York to temporarily stay with her son. But for those who cannot afford to fly to the U.S. mainland, the future is uncertain.
“I don't know what we're supposed to do,” said 27-year-old Eddie Caraballo as he walked around with a small speaker playing reggaeton to cheer himself up. “They evacuated all of us. All of us."
Among the 300 people staying in Guayanilla’s largest shelter was its mayor, Nelson Torres. He said two bridges are cracked and five of the town’s seven schools that serve some 2,500 students are seriously damaged. Other schools in the region also were damaged, prompting Puerto Rico's education secretary to announce Friday that classes in schools that have passed inspections would start Jan. 22, two weeks later than usual. In addition, Torres said 51 homes collapsed and another 19 are too dangerous to live in, and hundreds of other families whose homes were not damaged are still living in shelters regardless.
“We have a problem here,” he said. “People don't want to return home.”
As a full moon rose over Puerto Rico overnight, the smell of mosquito repellent filled the air and the shelter in Guayanilla grew quiet except for the occasional crunch of footsteps on the blue tarps covering parts of the baseball field.
It’s the same type of tarp that Carmen Orengo, a 67-year-old shelter refugee, had on her home for a year after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm, killing an estimated 2,975 people in the aftermath and causing more than an estimated $100 billion in damage.
“I lost everything in the hurricane,” she said as she paused and sighed: “Only to go through the same thing again.”
