Puerto Rico's water utility loses two-thirds of supply to leaks as drought rationing expands

Puerto Rico's public water utility, PRASA, loses roughly 65% of what it produces to leaks and unbilled use — so barely a third reaches paying customers. That infrastructure failure compounds a drought that has forced over 500,000 residents into 48-hour rotating shutoffs. Rationing can stabilize the Carraízo reservoir, but it cannot repair pipes that waste more water than they deliver.