Puerto Rico Morning Brief Saturday, October 3, 2026

Rationing has begun at the Cedro system in Naranjito, and around 4,000 people in the municipality may be affected by the water shortage. The residents who rely on that system are the ones facing reduced or no service as the rationing takes effect. Households in that situation have to plan their daily water use around the schedule the shortage imposes.

Puerto Rico’s electricity tariff has reached a record high of 33.86 cents per kilowatt hour. That is the price every household and business on the grid is now measured against when the monthly bill arrives, and it is the highest the rate has been.

A federal judge has authorized a natural gas ship to enter San Juan Bay, and the vessel is expected to come in on Sunday at 6:00 AM. The judge’s authorization is what clears the way for that arrival.

The Panel on the Independent Special Prosecutor (PFEI) determined on Friday that there is not sufficient cause to appoint a special prosecutor against Nannette Martínez Ortiz, the former director of PRITS. With that decision, the investigation against her is dropped and no independent prosecutor will be named in the matter.

The Oversight Board (JSF) has asked FEMA to clarify whether municipalities can tax construction projects that are paid for with federal funds. The answer bears on how much towns can charge on that work and on what those projects ultimately cost.

Health figures show that 49.5% of dengue cases in Puerto Rico required hospitalization. Nearly half of the people who contracted the disease therefore needed hospital care, a share that falls on patients and families as well as on the hospitals treating them.

Several matters remain open. The natural gas ship is due in San Juan Bay on Sunday morning. FEMA has yet to respond to the Oversight Board on whether municipalities may tax federally funded construction. In Naranjito, the roughly 4,000 people who may be affected are living with rationing that has only just started.