St. Croix reports island-wide power outage forcing officials to close schools and offices

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The U.S. Virgin Islands has reported an island-wide power outage on St. Croix that forced officials to close schools and government offices. The islands’ Water and Power Authority said there was a loss of power generation at the Estate Richmond power plant around dawn. Officials later said generation was lost again as crews worked to fix the problem. Island-wide power outages have become increasingly common in St. Croix, where more than 41,000 people live. Officials have said the largest generator is inefficient and that the smaller units are not able to withstand the additional load when it fails.