ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Puerto Rico is trying to pick up the pieces after Hurricane Ernesto battered the island this week.

What You Need To Know

  • Puerto Rican natives in New York state are thinking of family and friends in their homeland battered from Hurricane Ernesto 

  • Many people here have family and friends on the island trying to get access to food, water and power 

  • It's estimated nearly three-quarters of a million people are without power in Puerto Rico

The hurricane season is a challenging time for the people of Puerto Rico.

Hispanic communities across New York are keeping a close eye on Hurricane Ernesto and the damage it left behind in Puerto Rico.

The state is home to thousands of natives, and many have relatives there.

That includes Orlando Ortiz.

“We want to pray for all those families in Puerto Rico that are going through this and make sure that they have a speedy recovery as hurricane season passes," he said.

Ortiz, who now lives in Rochester, spent the first 10 years of his life in Puerto Rico. He still has family and friends there trying to get access to food, water and power – as so many are on the island.

While the natives there prepare every year for hurricanes, Ortiz says the hurricane season brings stress and anxiety to the people who re-live the threat year after year.

“With any hurricane season, we kind of go back to the big hurricanes [like] Hurricane Irma and Maria that had many impacts on the island," he said. "So, it’s almost like a PTSD kind of sentiment for folks on an island to want to not have to relive.”

Ortiz says he remembers his family preparing for scenes like this when he was a boy and says it’s part of the reality of living in Puerto Rico. But he also says the Hispanic community stands together in support of each other. Ortiz himself is the organizer of the city’s popular annual Puerto Rican Festival.

“I do think tragedies like this or disasters I should say, tend to band the Puerto Rican community because it helps us unite in terms of one common cause and make sure that we’re providing that assistance back to the island as best as we can from here,” said Ortiz.

The latest number is nearly three-quarters of a million people without power in Puerto Rico. Utility officials are unable to say when power will be restored. Many folks are sleeping outside because of the extreme heat.