The head of Puerto Rico’s power utility resigned Friday while facing scrutiny for the slow progress being made on restoring the island’s power grid eight weeks after Hurricane Maria devastated the U.S. territory.
Ricardo Ramos, executive director of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), submitted his resignation, effective immediately, to the utility’s board.
His sudden departure comes days after Ramos testified before the Senate over a controversial $300 million contract he signed with a small Montana firm to restore power to the island territory.
The contract, which Puerto Rico officials canceled after the hearing, was suspect because the bankrupt utility chose Whitefish Energy over larger firms with lower rates and more experience in dealing with disaster-stricken areas, according to The Washington Post.
PREPA workers repair damage from Hurricane Maria in Canvanas, Puerto Rico, on Oct. 10. (Photo: Alex Flynn/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
After Ramos’ resignation was announced, Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló recommended that the PREPA board of directors appoint Justo González, who’s served the authority since 1989, as interim director.
“This designation will begin the process of evaluating the best available candidates, from both inside and outside Puerto Rico, in order to go ahead and name a permanent executive director for PREPA,” Rosselló said after recommending González.
“I trust that this process will occur as fast as possible and will not affect the work of rehabilitating the electricity system across the island.”
San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz, an outspoken voice for more support during Puerto Rico’s recovery, said that Ramos “helped destroy the credibility of the PR government” and called him “a disgrace.”
That Ricardo Ramos does not head PREPA is the right thing. That he helped destroy the credibility of the PR government is a disgrace.
In his hearing with the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee this week, Ramos defended his contract with Whitefish Energy, saying that he chose the firm after reviewing “a half-dozen proposals” and found that Whitefish and another firm were the only two that offered immediate services that Puerto Rico desperately needed.
“I chose to contract with Whitefish because my priority was securing the immediate assistance of first responders that we desperately needed,” he said in a prepared statement.
Ramos added that he believed PREPA was unable to meet the requirements for mutual assistance with other public utility companies, “such as providing accommodations for workers and other logistics.”
Ramos also said that PREPA didn’t have enough supplies for their own crews, let alone another firms.
“We had no fuel, no phone, no internet. No nothing,” Ramos said to the committee, according to The New York Times. “How could I bring more people into that situation?”
On Wednesday, a major blackout shuttered San Juan, the island’s capital and most populous city, and surrounding areas hours after officials announced that Puerto Rico had reached its goal of having 50 percent of its power generation restored, ABC News reported. The blackout dropped the island’s power generation down to 22 percent.
Maria Lopez cries while walking from her house that was flooded after the passage of Hurricane Maria, in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, on September 22, 2017. Puerto Rico battled dangerous floods Friday after Hurricane Maria ravaged the island, as rescuers raced against time to reach residents trapped in their homes and the death toll climbed to 33. Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello called Maria the most devastating storm in a century after it destroyed the US territory's electricity and telecommunications infrastructure. / AFP PHOTO / HECTOR RETAMAL (Photo credit should read HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP/Getty Images)
Loiza, PUERTO RICO SEPTEMBER 22: Aerial photo of the floadings in the costal town of Loiza, in the north shore of Puerto RicoHurricane Maria passed through Puerto Rico leaving behind a path of destruction across the national territory. (Photo by Dennis M. Rivera Pichardo for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
HAYALES DE COAMO, PUERTO RICO - SEPTEMBER 24: Karlian Mercado, 7, rests on the rubble that remains of her family's home after it was blown away by Hurricane Maria as it passed through the area on September 24, 2017 in Hayales de Coamo, Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico experienced widespread damage after Hurricane Maria, a category 4 hurricane, passed through. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Irma Torres poses for a picture at her damaged house after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico September 22, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
Local residents react while they look at the water flowing over the road at the dam of the Guajataca lake after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria in Guajataca, Puerto Rico September 23, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
A man looks at damages on his flooded house, close to the dam of the Guajataca lake after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria in Guajataca, Puerto Rico September 23, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
A man sits in a wheelchair next to washing machines at a shelter after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria, in San Juan, Puerto Rico September 22, 2017. Picture taken September 22, 2017. REUTERS/Alvin Baez
LOIZA, PUERTO RICO - SEPTEMBER 22: A resident wades through flood water days after Hurricane Maria made landfall, on September 22, 2017 in Loiza, Puerto Rico. Many on the island have lost power, running water, and cell phone service after Hurricane Maria, a category 4 hurricane, passed through. (Photo by Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images)
People stay at the roof of a damaged house after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico September 22, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
PUERTO RICO SEPTEMBER 23: A devastated house in Morovis Puerto Rico. Hurricane Maria passed through Puerto Rico leaving behind a path of destruction across the national territory. (Photo by Dennis M. Rivera Pichardo for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO - SEPTEMBER 22: Residents line up for gasoline days after Hurricane Maria made landfall, on September 22, 2017 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Many on the island have lost power, running water, and cell phone service after Hurricane Maria, a category 4 hurricane, passed through. (Photo by Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images)
A car submerged in flood waters is seen close to the dam of the Guajataca lake after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria in Guajataca, Puerto Rico September 23, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
A resident lay on a cot inside a shelter after being evacuated from a home near the damaged Guajataca Dam after Hurricane Maria in Isabella, Puerto Rico, on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2017. Amid their struggles to recover from�Hurricane�Maria, some Puerto Rico residents found it befuddling that President Donald Trump fired off a number of Twitter rants about professional athletes on Saturday -- yet made no mention of their dire situation. Photographer: Alex Wroblewski/Bloomberg via Getty Images
People stop on a highway near a mobile phone antenna tower to check for mobile phone signal, after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria, in Dorado, Puerto Rico September 22, 2017. Picture taken September 22, 2017. REUTERS/Alvin Baez
A dead horse is seen next to a road after the area was hit by Hurricane Maria in Quebradillas, Puerto Rico September 23, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
An aerial view shows the flooded neighbourhood of Juana Matos in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Catano, Puerto Rico, on September 22, 2017. Puerto Rico battled dangerous floods Friday after Hurricane Maria ravaged the island, as rescuers raced against time to reach residents trapped in their homes and the death toll climbed to 33. Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello called Maria the most devastating storm in a century after it destroyed the US territory's electricity and telecommunications infrastructure. / AFP PHOTO / Ricardo ARDUENGO (Photo credit should read RICARDO ARDUENGO/AFP/Getty Images)
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