Abstract

In September 20, 2017 Hurricane María impacted Puerto Rico. This was a catastrophic hurricane. The Puerto Rico population was impacted with category five winds of 175 – 200 MPH. The hurricane was 300 miles wide. The Island was affected for 24 hours with storm and hurricane winds. The whole Island had no electricity for weeks. During January 5, 2018, just 58.6% of the island electricity customers had electricity. The Fisheries Research Laboratory, where is located the CFSP, received electricity in January 16, 2018. The CFSP personnel worked four hours at the building using electrical generators, with temperatures around 94 degrees Fahrenheit. After lunch, personnel moved Shopping Centers or family who had electricity to continue working the data entry and other tasks. Hurricane María affected the fishing activity in many aspects. No electricity limited use of refrigerators and freezers to storage and manage the catch. Also, customers can not use their refrigerators. The gasoline and diesel for electric generators was scarce and very expensive. In 12, December 2018, the CFSP described that 50% of the fishing centers lacks of electricity. On the other hand fishing villages such as La Playuela Aguadilla, Los Machos Ceiba, were destructed by the hurricane surge. Due to the mentioned facts the marketing was affected too. The CFMS estimated that in December 2017, approximately 33% of the seafood restaurants still closed since hurricane María. The impact to Puerto Rico is estimated at $15.4 million in damages to fishing operations and businesses and revenue losses of $5.1 million. It’s estimated that 174 jobs were lost in the short term. The paper will show more socioeconomic and biological impacts

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