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Drought and aging infrastructure plunge Puerto Rico into a water crisis

Puerto Rico is facing yet another crisis as major cities are rationing water for residents due to severe drought conditions. This problem is also exposing the island's aging water infrastructure and lack of immediate government action, leaving many frustrated. For more on how families are coping and what officials are saying, Deema Zein spoke with investigative reporter Laura Perez Sanchez.

Drought and aging infrastructure plunge Puerto Rico into a water crisis

Puerto Rico finds itself in yet another crisis as major cities are implementing water rationing due to severe drought conditions and the island's aging water infrastructure, with Governor Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon appealing for residents to conserve water. In San Juan, investigative reporter Laura Perez Sanchez explained that people are feeling frustrated due to confusion surrounding the rationing system, and there have been discrepancies in who is supposed to receive water.

Experts attribute the water loss to the system's inefficiency, with as much as 60% of the water lost before reaching residents. While there is hope for improvement through better management of underground water resources, meteorologists predict the current dry conditions will persist until the end of the year.

Written by urgent.news from PBS NewsHour Health's reporting — not their text. Machine-written; read the original for the full account.

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