Hurricane Fiona has caused lots of "anxiety" for former Philly teacher living in Puerto Rico
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Catastrophic. That's how the governor of Puerto Rico is describing the aftermath of Hurricane Fiona.
The storm unleashed torrential rain Monday -- just one day after it knocked out power to most of the island.
It could take days to get the lights back on.
Authorities report one death from the hurricane.
On Tuesday, FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell will travel to Puerto Rico to assess the damage and meet with local leaders.
Help from the Philly region is on the ground Monday night.
Most of the just under 2.7 million American citizens living on the island of Puerto Rico Monday night are doing so without any power, and nearly five years to the day that Hurricane Maria devastated the island. Many are saying here we go again, as they deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Fiona.
"Oh it's been very stressful, a lot of anxiety, Angel Rivera said.
Rivera and his partner moved to Philadelphia in January 2018 after Hurricane Maria destroyed much of Puerto Rico in September of 2017.
Rivera worked as a teacher at Imhotep Institute Charter High School. But last June, he moved back home to Puerto Rico to be closer to family, believing that the worst of Maria was behind the island.
"I see a lot of people that lost homes that didn't get to build homes back, but things were much better obviously," Rivera said.
Rivera says the media in Puerto Rico downplayed the potential severity of Hurricane Fiona, which impacted how residents prepared.
"If you lived through Maria and your house was OK, you're expecting that this will be a weaker storm, I'm going to be a OK," Rivera said.
Of course, many are anything but OK.
"A lot of people have lost homes, they lost everything," Rivera said.
That destruction is where a current Philadelphia firefighter comes in. His name is captain Ken Pagurek. He's a member of the Pennsylvania task force, sent to the island to assess the damage and to help.
"There's obviously areas that have been inundated with water," Pagurek said.
And this is what he's there to accomplish:
"To go into all of the affected communities, seek out the emergency managers and work with them," Pagurek said.
As for Rivera, he exemplifies a fighting spirit.
"Hopefully, we'll get through this," Rivera said. "We've done it before."
