NewsLocal News

Actions

'We are concerned' — Northeast Ohioans with ties to Puerto Rico worried as Hurricane Fiona slams island

Posted at 5:31 PM, Sep 19, 2022
and last updated 2022-09-19 17:33:14-04

CLEVELAND — What’s happening in Puerto Rico has the attention of those in Cleveland with ties to the island.

Raquel M. Ortiz is an educator, author and artist. She is a professor at Lorain County Community College where she teaches Intro to Puerto Rican Studies. She was born and raised in Lorain, but still has family and friends on the island.

“We are concerned,” said Ortiz. Tomorrow marks the five-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria, the Category 4 hurricane that devastated the island.

“The infrastructure is very weak. After Hurricane Maria came the earthquake; after the earthquake came the pandemic. So, Puerto Rico is slowing reconstructing itself,” explained Ortiz.

On Tuesday evening there will be a remembrance ceremony from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Roberto Clemente Park in Cleveland.

RELATED: Hurricane Fiona knocks out power to Puerto Rico

Download the News 5 Cleveland app now for more stories from us, plus alerts on major news, the latest weather forecast, traffic information and much more. Download now on your Apple device here, and your Android device here.

You can also catch News 5 Cleveland on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV NOW, Hulu Live and more. We're also on Amazon Alexa devices. Learn more about our streaming options here.