After a pair of devastating hurricanes struck Puerto Rico five years apart, residents of the island have come to rely not on government agencies, but each other.
In Pozuelo, Guayama, TropiShack, a small acai and smoothie shack, has become a community diner. Nicolás Matta Cordero, 31, and Cristina Muñoz Laboy, 28, were contacted last week by the Chef Pau Rocio, who was looking for a space to cook for the communities most affected by the hurricane on the southern coast of the island.
"I think cooking a meal unites everyone," says Cordero,"getting the ingredients, preparing the food and distributing it is done in community." Laboy agrees, adding she considers the initiatives a part of the practice of collective healing."I believe that to really heal, we need to do it collectively — if I can help you, then let's do it; if I can't help you, then let's find someone who can — mutually, we have to hold space for each other," she says.
In the aftermath of Hurricane María, Puerto Ricans experienced the second longest blackout ever recorded, and in previous months, under the administration of LUMA Energy, customers continued to experience power outages and damage to electric equipment. In the wake of Hurricane Fiona, the island was again left completely without power, and 44% of customers — including hospitals and other medical clinics — are still without power.
The state route 155 that runs from Coamo to Vega Baja through Orocovis and Morovis is currently being cleared after landslides caused by Hurricane Fiona blocked access.The state route 155 that runs from Coamo to Vega Baja through Orocovis and Morovis is currently being cleared after landslides caused by Hurricane Fiona blocked access.
To eat is to create community. In the end, there is a map, a web, a landscape of networks. The topography of the island is transformed according to the exchanges of warm meals.
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