Puerto Rico water rationing begins with 48-hour shutoffs for 180,000 accounts
More than 180,000 water accounts around San Juan are rotating through 48-hour outages as drought hits an already strained system.
By Sal Moretti · Money Reporter
3 min read
Puerto Rico water rationing has begun for more than 180,000 customer accounts in and around San Juan, with alternating groups facing shutoffs lasting at least 48 hours, CBS News reported.
The figure refers to utility accounts, which can include homes and businesses, rather than a confirmed number of individual people. Officials had not set an end date and warned interruptions could be extended to 72 hours, according to CBS News.
How does Puerto Rico water rationing work?
Customers have been divided into two groups that take turns losing running water for at least 48 hours at a time. The cuts cover parts of San Juan and certain neighborhoods in Carolina, Juncos, Gurabo, Trujillo Alto, Canóvanas and Loíza, CBS News and an Associated Press report published by NBC News said.
Puerto Rico’s water and sewer system said it would send trucks carrying potable water, with hospitals and residences for older people receiving priority. The island’s Association of Health Services Administrators said hospitals and other health centers were prepared for the disruption, according to CBS News.
Drought arrives on top of earlier water problems
The emergency follows an exceptionally dry July in San Juan. CBS News reported that the capital received 0.54 inches of rain, its driest July since 1899, while the month was also the city’s second hottest on record.
News reports cited differing U.S. Drought Monitor estimates for the share of Puerto Rico in severe and moderate drought. Both accounts describe drought conditions as widespread, so the varying breakdowns should not be treated as one settled islandwide figure.
Dry weather is only part of the problem. The Washington Post reported that the main reservoir reached a critical low point, while officials said deferred maintenance and aging infrastructure had worsened the territory’s water troubles.
CBS News reported that San Juan communities had recorded at least 118 days of repeated outages in 2026 before the new rationing began, including intermittent service, full-day or multiday cutoffs and low pressure. Puerto Rico’s water authority has said roughly 65% of the water it produces is lost or goes unbilled, much of it through leaks and aging pipes, CBS News reported.
What happens next?
Officials have not said when normal service will return. A National Weather Service meteorologist in San Juan told CBS News that rainfall in the following two to three weeks was expected to be at least 50% below average.
Puerto Rico has used water rationing before, including in 2020 and 2015. During the 2015 restrictions, about 400,000 utility customers received water every third day, CBS News reported. Residents were reported storing water ahead of the current restrictions, while officials had not announced an end date.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS News.