Tesla Is Sending Battery Packs to Storm-Ravaged Puerto Rico

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A plea for Tesla to send help to Puerto Rico was spelled out with the remnants of a house torn apart from Hurricane Irma, and the electric car marker is now sending aid. In addition to building electric cars, Tesla also sells an at-home battery pack, the Powerwall, that can capture energy generated by solar panels: Tesla is now shipping hundreds of Powerwalls to Puerto Rico as the island continues to suffer from power outages.

Puerto Rico was already grappling with power outages after Hurricane Irma, a cateogry 5 storm, hit the island. At least 60,000 people were already without power when Hurricane Maria, a category 4 storm, knocked out power for the entire island's 3.5 million residents. Generators are currently helping power high-priority buildings like hospitals, but power likely won't return to the entire island for another six months. Tesla's Powerwall could help bridge the gap in some areas as Puerto Rico works to repairs its electrical grid.
 
A place where the power grid was fragile before the storm, Tesla can use PR as a testing ground for their battery products. Both Tesla and the people of PR benefit from this.
 
Can't contact truckers and roads are still a mess. I have family in PR and they were sharing how bad it is. Really not good. Hope and pray that another storm doesn't hit them for a while.
 
Kinda confused by the article.
How are these "powerwall" devices going to get recharged.
Do they rely on pre-existing solar panels, most of which are probably damaged beyond repair.
If so how much of the powergrid has pre-existing solar panel installations?
Is Tesla bring all the supplies and parts to repair said damaged panels.
Or are they going to use diesel generators, both of which are in short supply. (diesel and diesel generators)
Me thinks this is more marketing hype pie in the sky bullshit than benefit?
 
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Can't contact truckers and roads are still a mess. I have family in PR and they were sharing how bad it is. Really not good. Hope and pray that another storm doesn't hit them for a while.
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TFA mentions Tesla employees on the ground in PR assisting with solar panel repair. If Tesla really wanted a good operational test, they would send sets of these and matching solar panels to areas that currently have neither and are likely to be without power for months. Include several hundred USB charging outlets so folks can charge devices.
 
Apparently while the govt is running around like a headless chicken, one company is helping supply about 90 percent of the island's available electricity at the moment last I was checking. Good on Tesla.

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3.5 million American citizens, 55 percent of them without clean drinking water at the moment, that's an even bigger problem.
 
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3.5 million American citizens, 55 percent of them without clean drinking water at the moment, that's an even bigger problem.

They are "sort of" American's. Yes they are protected by the US Constitution. But they have no federal voting rights (no congressional representation nor do they vote for the President) and they do not pay federal income tax. So this idea going around last couple weeks that they are just like you and me is not entirely truthful. They aren't Hawaii.
 

not gonna help.

Exactly. It's a disaster. It's going to be a clusterfuck. People are acting like you can just undue total destruction overnight. It's going to take weeks, months, years and there will be suffering. Nothing could have prevented this. As much as people like to act like it nothing could have been prevented.
 
The island was/is a corrupt, bankrupt mess. The storms have stressed the infrastructure and exposed the weaknesses. So many years of liberal democrat style governance leads to this sort of disaster.

Rather than distributing usb charging stations, water purification would be a bit higher priority, imo. Solar panels and battery packs? Better than nothing. The people need water, food, and shelter. In that order. Being able to live-stream how much it sucks to live on a tropical island without power is rather low on the list of "needs".
 
Here is the Governor of Puerto Rico giving the same sentiment. That they just aren't a position to move things quickly on the island. And this was on The View no less, so no leniency is provided for #45 administration.

 
The island was/is a corrupt, bankrupt mess. The storms have stressed the infrastructure and exposed the weaknesses. So many years of liberal democrat style governance leads to this sort of disaster.

Rather than distributing usb charging stations, water purification would be a bit higher priority, imo. Solar panels and battery packs? Better than nothing. The people need water, food, and shelter. In that order. Being able to live-stream how much it sucks to live on a tropical island without power is rather low on the list of "needs".

I think the entity we called "God" by many names destroyed the island. Thus this was in insurance terms, "An Act of God." Now I'll let you decide which political party he sides with. :)

Now if a political party refused to implement hurricane regulations for housing, businesses, and the basic infrastructure such as heating, water, and electricity then I would hope that the people of Puerto Rico vote them out. :)
 
They are "sort of" American's. Yes they are protected by the US Constitution. But they have no federal voting rights (no congressional representation nor do they vote for the President) and they do not pay federal income tax. So this idea going around last couple weeks that they are just like you and me is not entirely truthful. They aren't Hawaii.

Yeah that's bullshit. They're allowed to move to any of the 50 states in the US, at their own volition, and they instantly have those voting rights. They're full Americans, they just don't live in a US State. You might as well say people that live in Washington D.C. are only "sort of" Americans.
 
Kinda confused by the article.
How are these "powerwall" devices going to get recharged.
Do they rely on pre-existing solar panels, most of which are probably damaged beyond repair.
If so how much of the powergrid has pre-existing solar panel installations?
Is Tesla bring all the supplies and parts to repair said damaged panels.
Or are they going to use diesel generators, both of which are in short supply. (diesel and diesel generators)
Me thinks this is more marketing hype pie in the sky bullshit than benefit?

Furthermore... In a situation like this powerwalls are nearly worthless. So you have a battery that can run for 8 hours... But you have no power for days. A generator you just need to find fuel to keep it going, day or night, wind or no wind. Elon is now fully believing his own shit.
 
Yeah that's bullshit. They're allowed to move to any of the 50 states in the US, at their own volition, and they instantly have those voting rights. They're full Americans, they just don't live in a US State. You might as well say people that live in Washington D.C. are only "sort of" Americans.

Come on man, Washington D.C was done on purpose and there is even wording in the Constitution that provisions it. And the residents of Washington DC do try to call for statehood from time time. But that will probably never happen due to the desire to keep it neutral, given the immense power it has.

I said that the people of Puerto Rico are entitled to the same personal protections as all Americas under the Constitution. What I said is different is that their "state" has no power or representation in the federal government, nor is it taxed as such. Leaving to go to another state is not an acceptable solution to fixing that. If they want to be just the same as all Americans, then they should have the same stake in this country as all Americans do. Otherwise it is disingenuous to say they are no different.

Puerto Rico also has 5x the population of Washington DC. And you don't have to live in Washington DC to work in Washington DC. You don't have that luxury with PR.
 
Furthermore... In a situation like this powerwalls are nearly worthless. So you have a battery that can run for 8 hours... But you have no power for days. A generator you just need to find fuel to keep it going, day or night, wind or no wind. Elon is now fully believing his own shit.

As with anything Musk does, I would look for where the government subsidies are tied in. He's not one for doing stuff that isn't at least partially paid for by tax dollars.
 
They are "sort of" American's. Yes they are protected by the US Constitution. But they have no federal voting rights (no congressional representation nor do they vote for the President) and they do not pay federal income tax. So this idea going around last couple weeks that they are just like you and me is not entirely truthful. They aren't Hawaii.

Legally they certainly are, even if they don't belong to a voting "state" per se.

"United States citizenship. On March 2, 1917, the JonesShafroth Act was signed, collectively making Puerto Ricans United States citizens without rescinding their Puerto Rican citizenship."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rican_citizenship#United_States_citizenship

Regardless, the point is it's a disgrace for them to go through such an ordeal, absolutely incompetent leadership in DC.
 
Regardless, the point is it's a disgrace for them to go through such an ordeal, absolutely incompetent leadership in DC.

You are referring to everything they have ever been subjected to, or specifically this natural disaster? If this disaster specifically, very few people there have made critical remarks about the Federal governments response. Most have praised the response and acknowledge that its just going to take time no matter what.
 
You are referring to everything they have ever been subjected to, or specifically this natural disaster? If this disaster specifically, very few people there have made critical remarks about the Federal governments response. Most have praised the response and acknowledge that its just going to take time no matter what.

I bet wierdo is getting in his car right now to drive over and lend a hand.
 
Kinda confused by the article.
How are these "powerwall" devices going to get recharged.
Do they rely on pre-existing solar panels, most of which are probably damaged beyond repair.
If so how much of the powergrid has pre-existing solar panel installations?
Is Tesla bring all the supplies and parts to repair said damaged panels.
Or are they going to use diesel generators, both of which are in short supply. (diesel and diesel generators)
Me thinks this is more marketing hype pie in the sky bullshit than benefit?

From the article: Tesla employees are on the ground in Puerto Rico to help install battery packs and repair solar panels, a Tesla spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider.
 
Yeah that's bullshit. They're allowed to move to any of the 50 states in the US, at their own volition, and they instantly have those voting rights. They're full Americans, they just don't live in a US State. You might as well say people that live in Washington D.C. are only "sort of" Americans.

The federal government is doing what it can and is not prepared to rebuild a territory and it never was. The locals plus contractors will have to do that. Funding to assist is a good idea but there is no fast solution. Washington DC pays federal income tax and plenty of other taxes. Puerto Rico sucks up tons of aid and is bankrupt from mismanagement of funds much like the school system of Detroit. Taxation = representation. Therefore, DC should have a few real electoral votes per it's population though.
 
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Yeah that's bullshit. They're allowed to move to any of the 50 states in the US, at their own volition, and they instantly have those voting rights. They're full Americans, they just don't live in a US State. You might as well say people that live in Washington D.C. are only "sort of" Americans.

Terrible argument. Washington DC and Puerto Rico couldn't possibly be more different.

Fact is the island has been an economic mess for a long time and they could, and probably should, have been a state decades ago, if they had decided to.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rican_status_referendum,_2017

Do some reading. They've chosen their path. 97% vote for statehood this year on 23% of the vote because of massive boycotting.
 
Furthermore... In a situation like this powerwalls are nearly worthless. So you have a battery that can run for 8 hours... But you have no power for days. A generator you just need to find fuel to keep it going, day or night, wind or no wind. Elon is now fully believing his own shit.

But how does one ship the fuel to the generator when the roads are destroyed? Tesla also make solar panels, which require battery backup to provide 24hr power. This is perfect for distributed power in areas which are hard for large vehicles to reach but happen to receive lots of sunlight. Diesel generators not so much. It's like the shit Elon is spewing is based on common sense or something.
 
You know, this thread isn't' really the place to do it because this is more about powerwalls but there is such a lack of understanding on who is responsible for what in these disasters and how /what is done, the legal frameworks etc. etc. and so much wrong information out there and listening to people try to establish blame without understanding how any of it works or the realities its painful.
 
You know, this thread isn't' really the place to do it because this is more about powerwalls but there is such a lack of understanding on who is responsible for what in these disasters and how /what is done, the legal frameworks etc. etc. and so much wrong information out there and listening to people try to establish blame without understanding how any of it works or the realities its painful.
There's no confusion, you can't store anything on an island that will be wiped out. Any supplies will need to be shipped which takes time. Beyond this whose fallen down on what is obscured by the attempt to Katrina Trump. They embarrassed themselves trying with Texas and Florida. So you I don't trust anybody's claims.
 
There's no confusion, you can't store anything on an island that will be wiped out. Any supplies will need to be shipped which takes time. Beyond this whose fallen down on what is obscured by the attempt to Katrina Trump. They embarrassed themselves trying with Texas and Florida. So you I don't trust anybody's claims.
Pretty good statement and attitude to have. I just wish people understood that the success or failure of any disaster relief is ultimately a local one. Texas did well because of Texas, Florida did well because of Florida, Louisiana(katrina) did shit because of Louisiana and its looking like PR will do shit because of PR, although at this point its too earlier to tell. All the federal side does is provide resources. Directing those resources is done by state (although in PR case i don't know if their is more or less autonomy for federal assets). The state is in charge in all these events. The state has to ask for stuff, and then when it arrives tell it what to do. You can criticize x administration for not turning around those requests fast enough but I don't think anyone has ever done that analysis.
 
They are "sort of" American's. Yes they are protected by the US Constitution. But they have no federal voting rights (no congressional representation nor do they vote for the President) and they do not pay federal income tax. So this idea going around last couple weeks that they are just like you and me is not entirely truthful. They aren't Hawaii.

I was wondering on that too. In this day, Spanish speaking latinos pleading for help hits a lotta deaf ears. Maybe Puerto Ricans will now get their Sh$t together. The tax benefits that corporations get for being on 'foreign soil' hasn't helped them either. Statehood fools!
 
I was wondering on that too. In this day, Spanish speaking latinos pleading for help hits a lotta deaf ears. Maybe Puerto Ricans will now get their Sh$t together. The tax benefits that corporations get for being on 'foreign soil' hasn't helped them either. Statehood fools!
Statehood wouldn't change anything for the better for them except an increase in federal welfare benefits. Their taxes would increase massively (they have a 30% income tax, plus sales tax, now add federal taxes) and they are still subject to the jones act which massively jacks up prices and they still have to pay federal minimum wage which jacks up prices even more. They are utterly noncompetitive compared to their neighboring islands who don't have a minimum wage and don't have the jones act. Their only hope is to attract people/businesses with tax schemes.
 
But how does one ship the fuel to the generator when the roads are destroyed? Tesla also make solar panels, which require battery backup to provide 24hr power. This is perfect for distributed power in areas which are hard for large vehicles to reach but happen to receive lots of sunlight. Diesel generators not so much. It's like the shit Elon is spewing is based on common sense or something.

how do you ship solar panels to area where large vehicles cant get to?
 
Pretty good statement and attitude to have. I just wish people understood that the success or failure of any disaster relief is ultimately a local one. Texas did well because of Texas, Florida did well because of Florida, Louisiana(katrina) did shit because of Louisiana and its looking like PR will do shit because of PR, although at this point its too earlier to tell. All the federal side does is provide resources. Directing those resources is done by state (although in PR case i don't know if their is more or less autonomy for federal assets). The state is in charge in all these events. The state has to ask for stuff, and then when it arrives tell it what to do. You can criticize x administration for not turning around those requests fast enough but I don't think anyone has ever done that analysis.

Those states also have the benefit that they weren't completely destroyed, and goods/people from outside the area can come in an assist. P.R. is an island that's about 1000 miles away from Miami.
 
Some analysis of this here:


Interesting take on the possibility of PR serving as an example of distributed power generation if things work out.

Not as interesting as dedicating a "golf trophy" to the disaster stricken region of course, but we gotta start somewhere right?
 
Some analysis of this here:


Interesting take on the possibility of PR serving as an example of distributed power generation if things work out.

Not as interesting as dedicating a "golf trophy" to the disaster stricken region of course, but we gotta start somewhere right?


analysis not found. more like one of those sunday paid ads for tesla.
 
how do you ship solar panels to area where large vehicles cant get to?

A bunch of solar panels fit on the back of a small vehicle, and supply some power for 10 years. The same weight in oil could also be transported, and would supply a much larger amount of power for several hours. You can hate Tesla as much as you want for whatever reasons you want, but distributed solar power is seems like a good solution to the problems in PR.
 
A bunch of solar panels fit on the back of a small vehicle, and supply some power for 10 years. The same weight in oil could also be transported, and would supply a much larger amount of power for several hours. You can hate Tesla as much as you want for whatever reasons you want, but distributed solar power is seems like a good solution to the problems in PR.

So these magical solar panels don't blow away during hurricanes?
 
So these magical solar panels don't blow away during hurricanes?

Yes - In that configuration. I've seen panels that basically fold into a post under the ground. It's pretty cool. That or when you know a storm is coming just take them down and have them setup in a way where you can do that.

Not that I think any of this will really help PR. This is just Tesla getting easy brownie points even though the real problem with Puerto Rico is that they can't even move around the island to do shit like deliver/install a solar panel. They need to do basic things like rebuild roads first.
 
Word is they're only letting union drivers move the mountain of supplies out of the docks. Many licensed truckers are being turned away.
 
I think the opinions are off target when discussing what Tesla should be sending.
They are a corporate entity sending a needed asset and installing the hardware while repairing the solar panels to recharge them.
The contractors will have power andbtgats a big need to power water purification and lights so they can work at night.
Hospitals need power to stabilise the injured and keep respirators on and power lights and sanitization equipment.

If Tesla made solar water purification systems they would Probally send some too.

GOOD ON THEM, for sending ANYTHING.

How many other companies are sending anything AND providing labor.

Just a related thought I had.
 
I think the opinions are off target when discussing what Tesla should be sending.
They are a corporate entity sending a needed asset and installing the hardware while repairing the solar panels to recharge them.
The contractors will have power andbtgats a big need to power water purification and lights so they can work at night.
Hospitals need power to stabilise the injured and keep respirators on and power lights and sanitization equipment.

If Tesla made solar water purification systems they would Probally send some too.

GOOD ON THEM, for sending ANYTHING.

How many other companies are sending anything AND providing labor.

Just a related thought I had.

No telsa is a PR company that happens to make a few things. Its like an apple cult that sells far less product.
 
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