2020 in Puerto Rico

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 2020
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Decades:
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  • 2010s
  • 2020s
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Events in the year 2020 in Puerto Rico.

Incumbents

Events

January to April
  • January 6 – A magnitude 5.8Mw  earthquake causes landslides, power outages, and the destruction of Punta Ventana, a natural stone arch along the southern coast. No casualties were reported.[1]
  • January 7 – A 6.4Mw  2020 Guayanilla earthquake rocks southwest Puerto Rico. One man died and 8 were injured. Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced declares a state of emergency and activates the national guard.[2]
  • January 18 – Residents of Ponce broke into a warehouse and found bottled water, cots, baby food, and other unused emergency supplies stored since Hurricane Maria in September 2017. Governor Wanda Vázquez fired Carlos Acevedo, the director of the island's emergency management agency.[3]
  • January 19 – Glorimar Andújar and Fernando Gil-Enseñat, Secretaries of Family Services Housing respectively, are fired in the warehouse scandal. Nino Correa is appointed chief of operations for the Emergency Management Office.[4]
  • February 2 – Jennifer Lopez wows the crowd by wearing a costume featuring the flag of Puerto Rico during her half-time appearance at the Super Bowl LIV.[5]
  • February 26 – José Irizarry, a former Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent who worked in Cartagena, Colombia, and his wife, are extradited from Puerto Rico to Miami to face charges of money laundering and related crimes.[6]
  • March 4 – A referendum on possible statehood is approved for the November 3 election, although there is no money for publicity. The single question is, "Should Puerto Rico be immediately admitted into the Union as a state?", with only two options: "yes" or "no".[7]
  • March 23 – Governor Wanda Vázquez announces a $787 million financial package to alleviate the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The package is bigger than any announced so far by U.S. states. It includes moratoriums on loans and bonuses for health service workers and police officers.[8]
  • March 25 – The island announces the first death of a resident due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico, a 48-year-old female teacher from Rincon. There have been 60 infected cases and two deaths in the territory, both to tourists.[9]
  • April 15
    • A federal judge rules that Puerto Rico cannot fund $300 million of pensions and health cost for municipal employees, but delays the ruling for three weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic.[10]
    • Fifty-one deaths and 970 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Puerto Rico, which is less than the numbers in U.S. states such as Utah, which has 3.2 million people, 18 deaths and more than 2,300 confirmed cases. However, PR has tested only 9,200 people, whereas UT has tested 45,700. The Puerto Rican government touts its low numbers as a sign of success, but critics worry about limited data and the economic effects of the lockdown that began on March 15 and will extend to May 3.[11]
  • April 18 – The government's handling of coronavirus contingency is called into question as the island's youngest victim, a 29-year-old man who had twice been denied testing for the virus before he died in a hospital emergency room, and a refrigerated trailer with food for needy people was accidentally disconnected, resulting in the loss of chicken, vegetables, fruits, and other items.[12]
  • April 26 – Rescheduled date for the 2020 Puerto Rico Democratic primary[13]

May to August

September to December
  • September 9 – The Pittsburgh Pirates take #21 out of retirement for a game against the Chicago White Sox at PNC Park on September 9, 2020, which is celebrated by Major League Baseball (MLB) as "Roberto Clemente Day". Clemente, a Puerto Rico native, died in a plane crash in December 1972 while en route to Nicaragua to deliver disaster relief to victims of an earthquake.[28]
  • September 14 – A bipartisan group of Congressmen led by Darren Soto (D-FL) introduce a bill to recognize the results of the November 3 referendum on statehood.[29]
  • November 3
  • December 1 – The Arecibo Telescope collapses.[31]
  • December 10 – The Water and Sewer Authority and for Puerto Rico gets refinancing for $1.4 billion worth of bonds, which should result in a $13 million annual savings for the utility.[32]

Deaths
Iris M. Zavala

See also

References
  1. Puerto Rico earthquake destroys iconic natural landmark The Hill, Jan 6, 2020
  2. A 6.4 magnitude earthquake hits Puerto Rico, killing 1 a day after another quake rocked the island By Jason Hanna, Paul P. Murphy, & Joe Sutton, CNN, Jan 7, 2020
  3. Puerto Rico residents outraged after discovering warehouse full of unused aid from Hurricane Maria NBC News, 19 Jan 2020
  4. Puerto Rico governor fires 2 more cabinet members after the discovery of Hurricane Maria supplies stacked in a warehouse By Rafael Romo and Christina Maxouris, CNN, 20 Jan 2020
  5. Jennifer Lopez sings 'Born in the USA' while wearing Puerto Rican flag during halftime show by Aris Folley, The Hill, 2 Feb 2020
  6. Ex-DEA agent, wife, to leave Puerto Rico, face trial in US By DANICA COTO, AP, February 26, 2020
  7. Puerto Rico: Governor Vázquez informs that funds should be sought for the plebiscite for statehood (in Spanish) Nodal, 4 Mar 2020
  8. Puerto Rico unveils record $787M package to fight COVID-19 By DANICA COTO, AP, 23 Mar 2020
  9. Govt under fire after 1st Puerto Rican coronavirus death By DANICA COTO, AP, 27 Mar 2020
  10. Judge voids Puerto Rico pension law, delays effective date due to coronavirus Reuters, 15 Apr 2020
  11. Coto, Danica (15 April 2020). "Missteps mar Puerto Rico's response to the coronavirus". AP NEWS. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  12. "Puerto Rico under scrutiny as youngest COVID-19 patient dies". AP NEWS. 18 April 2020. Retrieved Apr 23, 2020.
  13. Puerto Rico postpones presidential primary By ZACH MONTELLARO, Politico, 21 Mar 2020, retrieved 28 Mar 2020
  14. "Sismo de magnitud 5,5 sacude Puerto Rico". CNN en Español (in Spanish). 2 May 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  15. "Latest Earthquakes". earthquake.usgs.gov. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  16. "Hispanic Caucus urges more coronavirus care for older, vulnerable Latinos in U.S., Puerto Rico". NBC News. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
  17. "Judge to hear lawsuit on Puerto Rico school food crisis". ABC News. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  18. "As Confederate Statues Fall in the U.S., Puerto Rico Confronts Spain's Painful Legacy". Time. Retrieved July 12, 2020.
  19. "Trump suggested selling Puerto Rico in response to Hurricane Maria, says former Cabinet official". news.yahoo.com. Retrieved July 12, 2020.
  20. "Puerto Rico wanted tourists, but with coronavirus cases spiking, it has changed plans". NBC News. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  21. "FEMA acknowledges Puerto Rico lacks rebuilt homes and a hospital to survive COVID-19". NBC News. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  22. Coleman, Justine (3 August 2020). "CEO of Puerto Rico's state-owned power utility resigns amid outages". TheHill. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  23. COTO, DÁNICA. "Puerto Rico governor loses primary of pro-statehood party". news.yahoo.com. Associated Press. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  24. Press, Associated. "Puerto Rico's governor loses primary in chaotic election". POLITICO. Retrieved August 18, 2020.
  25. Zoellner, Danielle. "FBI agents arrest Puerto Rican representative for alleged involvement in conspiracy to defraud to government". news.yahoo.com. The Independent. Retrieved August 18, 2020.
  26. Conradis, Brandon (25 August 2020). "Ocasio-Cortez, Velázquez call for convention to decide Puerto Rico status". TheHill. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
  27. Swanson, Ian (25 August 2020). "Ocasio-Cortez slams Kimberly Guilfoyle over immigration claims". TheHill. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
  28. Acevedo, Nicole. "MLB's Pirates will honor Roberto Clemente by wearing his number". NBC News. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  29. Rowland, Geoffrey (15 September 2020). "Florida Democrat introduces bill to recognize Puerto Rico statehood referendum". TheHill. Retrieved Sep 15, 2020.
  30. "Puerto Rico to hold statehood referendum amid disillusion". news.yahoo.com. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  31. Hand, Eric (1 December 2020). "Arecibo telescope collapses, ending 57-year run". Science | AAAS. Science. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
  32. Acevedo, Nicole (December 10, 2020). "One of Puerto Rico's most essential utilities returns to capital market after 8 years". news.yahoo.com. Yahoo News. AP. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  33. "Fallece el cuatro veces campeón de boxeo del mundo 'Sugar' de León". elperiodico.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 January 2020.
  34. "Hercules Ayala Passes Away at 69". ringsidenews.com. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  35. Fallece el reportero Leo Fernández III (in Spanish)
  36. Fallece el exgrandesligas Ramón Avilés (in Spanish)
  37. Fallece el pintor ponceño Wichie Torres (in Spanish)
  38. Muere el beisbolista Ramón "Wito" Conde (in Spanish)
  39. Transgender woman killed in Puerto Rico after using women's bathroom NBC News, 25 Feb 2020
  40. https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-51651893
  41. Fallece Rafael Cancel Miranda, ex preso político y el último sobreviviente del ataque al Congreso en 1954 (in Spanish)
  42. Muere la escritora puertorriqueña Iris Zavala por coronavirus en España (in Spanish)
  43. Miriam Jiménez Román
  44. Soraya Santiago Solla, Transgender Trailblazer, Dies at 72
  45. Longtime Federal Appeals Court Judge Juan Torruella Dies
  46. Fallece Cano Estremera, el “Dueño del Soneo” (in Spanish)
  47. Luto en el voleibol por la muerte de exentrenador de la Selección Nacional (in Spanish)
  48. Nuyorican Poets Cafe Co-Founder Miguel Algarín Dies at 79
  49. De luto el béisbol boricua por el fallecimiento de Rogelio Moret (in Spanish)
  50. "Fallece el cantante de salsa Tito Rojas". El Universal (in Spanish). El Universal. 26 December 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
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