May 29 Watch 8:27 Chaotic and unending recovery after Hurricane Maria leads to far more dead than official government estimates The death toll from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico last year was far larger than known, according to a new study. At least 4,645 people on the island are estimated to have died as a result of the storm and… Continue watching
Apr 19 Puerto Rico’s recovery, 7 months after Hurricane Maria By Ryan Connelly Holmes The island has had two major power outages in less than a week. Here's a look at where recovery stands. Continue reading
Apr 04 Watch 5:48 Can solar energy speed Puerto Rico’s recovery? Here’s what it would take By Nsikan Akpan It’s been just over six months since Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico and roughly 150,000 people still do not have power. A string of grassroots efforts aims to jumpstart the grid with solar energy. Science producer Nsikan Akpan explains… Continue watching
Mar 20 Puerto Rico went dark 6 months ago. Could a solar smart grid prevent the next energy disaster? By Nsikan Akpan Making renewables a mainstay in Puerto Rico will require more than solar panels and wind turbines. There's also a monopoly and Congress with which to contend. Continue reading
Feb 06 Watch 8:20 Can Houston prevent disaster when the next storm comes? By PBS News Hour, Frank Carlson, Gretchen Frazee Houston, known as the Bayou City, is no stranger to flooding. But the record-breaking rains and devastating deluge of Hurricane Harvey helped expose a disconnect between developers building on flood-vulnerable land and home buyers who might not have realized the… Continue watching
Feb 06 Watch 8:42 Puerto Rico’s education system hangs in the balance amid Hurricane Maria exodus By Monica Villamizar More than 50,000 students are expected to leave Puerto Rico for the mainland to continue their education. With hundreds of schools expected to close, the mass exodus has major consequences for the education system, and some see the storm as… Continue watching
Feb 05 Watch 9:07 How decades of Houston development add up to rising flood risk By Hari Sreenivasan, Frank Carlson, Gretchen Frazee Houston is 627 square miles of urban development, highways, office parks, strip malls and neighborhoods -- and it keeps growing farther and farther out. Five months ago, Hurricane Harvey devastated the Texas coast, dropping more than 50 inches of rain… Continue watching
Jan 29 Watch 8:36 Thousands of Texans are still in temporary housing awaiting Hurricane Harvey aid By PBS News Hour Five months after Hurricane Harvey tore through Houston with record rainfall and 130 mph winds, 33,000 Texans are still displaced and living in temporary federal housing. Meanwhile, 80 percent of hurricane victims did not have flood insurance, and for many,… Continue watching
Jan 29 Ripped apart by Hurricane Harvey, this Texas community needs tourists to come back By Gretchen Frazee Local officials estimate it will take three to five years to get back to normal. In an economy that gets 90 percent of its revenue from tourism, many business said they aren't sure they'll make it. Continue reading
Jan 25 Watch 7:33 Here’s why restoring power in Puerto Rico is taking so long By Monica Villamizar Four months after Hurricane Maria, about 450,000 of 1.5 million electricity customers in Puerto Rico still have no service. Blackouts regularly occur for hours at a time, even in San Juan. Special correspondent Monica Villamizar reports on the emergency efforts… Continue watching