Lessons Learned for Puerto Rico's Transportation Infrastructure after Hurricane Maria

摘要

Hurricane Maria arrived at the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017 as a category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 155 miles per hour (mph). Rainfall values up to 37.9 inches were registered in the mountainous region during the first 48 hours of the storm.' According to NASA, Maria was the most powerful storm to enter Puerto Rico in more than 80 years (fifth strongest overall entering any U.S. jurisdiction).(2) Also, Maria is the costliest hurricane to have impacted Puerto Rico with a preliminary cost estimate of $94 billion. At the national level, Maria ranks (at this moment) as the third most expensive hurricane in U.S. history, surpassed only by Katrina in 2005 with $160 billion and Harvey in 2017 with $125 billion.(3) An independent study conducted by George Washington University and commissioned by the Government of Puerto Rico estimated the loss of human lives to be 2,975 people; caused directly or indirectly by the passage of Maria in Puerto Rico after the first six months.' This death estimate places Maria as the second worst storm in U.S. history, surpassed only by the hurricane that hit Galveston, Texas in September 1900 that resulted in an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 deaths.