WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — As Puerto Rico endures widespread power and water outages from Hurricane Fiona, some Palm Beach County residents are still trying to get in touch with loved ones who live on the island.
All of this is familiar to residents who live in the U.S. territory, which was hit five years ago Tuesday by Category 4 Hurricane Maria.
At La Cosinita Latina, a Puerto Rican restaurant in West Palm Beach, Fiona was at the top of everyone's mind.
WPTV spoke with one woman who said she was in West Palm Beach visiting but is flying back to Puerto Rico on Tuesday. She said she expects to be without power for months.
Another man said he was able to get in touch with his brother in Rincon just when the rain was subsiding from the storm.
Landslides and flooding caused major damage to the southwest part of the island, forcing hundreds of people to be rescued.
"I'm really sorry about the center of the island because that's really [where] with Maria it is still recuperating, and now they'll go back again to square one," Cristobal Borges, who has family in Puerto Rico, said.
Borges said his family is OK, and he's happy he’s been able to speak with them since the lines of communication are still pretty busy on the island.
At the moment, it is very hard to get around in those parts hit hardest by the flooding.
The storm washed away a bridge in Utuado that was installed by the National Guard after Hurricane Maria hit.
