page_title: Effects of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico
section_title: Whitefish Contract
hierarchical_section_title: Effects of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico / Criticism of U.S. government response / Whitefish Contract
caption_attribution_description: English: NOAA Satellites captured images of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria knocked out the power grid and left millions without electricity.
context_page_description: Hurricane Maria in September 2017 devastated the entirety of Puerto Rico and caused a major humanitarian crisis. Originally a powerful Category 5 hurricane, Maria was the strongest storm to impact the island in nearly 90 years. Maria made landfall on Puerto Rico on September 20 at high-end Category 4 status, bringing a large storm surge, very heavy rains, and wind gusts well above 100 mph, flattening neighborhoods and crippling the island's power grid. An estimated 2,982 fatalities and US$90 billion in damage occurred as a result of the hurricane.
context_section_description: Soon after the hurricane struck, Whitefish Energy, a small Montana-based company with only two full-time employees, was awarded a $300 million contract by PREPA, Puerto Rico's state-run power company, to repair Puerto Rico's power grid, a move considered by many to be highly unusual for several reasons. The company contracted more than 300 personnel, most of them subcontractors, and sent them to the island to carry out work. PREPA cited Whitefish's comparatively small upfront cost of $3.7 million for mobilization as one of the main reasons for contracting them over larger companies. PREPA Executive Director Ricardo Ramos stated: "Whitefish was the only company -- it was the first that could be mobilized to Puerto Rico. It did not ask us to be paid soon or a guarantee to pay". No requests for assistance had been made to the American Public Power Association by October 24. The decision to hire such a tiny company was considered highly unusual by many, such as former Energy Department official Susan Tierney, who stated: "The fact that there are so many utilities with experience in this and a huge track record of helping each other out, it is at least odd why [the utility] would go to Whitefish”. Several representatives, both Democrats and Republicans, also voiced their concern over the choice to contract Whitefish instead of other companies. As the company was based in Whitefish, Montana, the hometown of US Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, and one of Zinke's sons had once done a summer internship at Whitefish, Zinke knew Whitefish's CEO personally. These facts led to accusations of privatization and cronyism, though Zinke dismissed these claims and stated that he had no role in securing the contract. In addition, Donald Trump himself, not just his cabinet, may having been involved in Whitefish obtaining the contract, as Whitefish's primary investor, HBC Investments, was founded by a prominent donor of Donald Trump.
  In a press release on October 27, FEMA stated it did not approve of PREPA's contract with Whitefish and cited "significant concerns". Governor Rosselló subsequently ordered an audit of the contract's budget. DHS Inspector General John Roth led the FEMA audit while Governor Rosselló called for a second review by Puerto Rico's Office of Management and Budget. The governor then demanded that the contract be called; this was executed on October 29.
caption: Comparison of lights at night in Puerto Rico before (top) and after (bottom) Hurricane Maria. Note: Lower image date should read "September 25, 2017"
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