The AAA board chair resigns over the rationing

On August 6, 2026, El Nuevo Día reports that Héctor Del Río Jiménez is resigning the chair of the governing board of the Aqueduct and Sewer Authority. The reason he puts down is the handling of the rationing plan: he says a plan that touches about 180,000 customers was not consulted. The customer figure is this note's. It is not rounded and not turned into a household census.

The rationing, according to the newspaper, is 48 hours from Friday at 6:00 a.m. for about 180,000 from Carraízo. The list of municipalities El Nuevo Día publishes is San Juan, Trujillo Alto, Carolina, Canóvanas, Gurabo, Loíza, and Juncos. Towns are not added. Doriel Pagán Crespo, in the same note, says notice was given on July 17. Thomas Rivera Schatz replies that they do not even take his board into account. Three voices. One plan. One resignation.

That same August 6, El Nuevo Día covers in another note the Drought Monitor declaring extreme drought in portions of the south, a day before the rationing other pieces date from August 7. The clip of that weather note speaks of coffee and irrigation hit, and of an unofficial coffee report at minus 69 percent. That figure is not in the resignation note. It is left in its outlet.

On August 11, El Vocero covers the UIA's 24-hour stoppage against the same AAA. On August 13, El Nuevo Día publishes that extreme drought already covers almost a fifth of Puerto Rico and that the Carraízo rationing has run since August 7. On August 5, the newspaper had reported the emergency reserve of about $1,300 million. None of those layers replaces Héctor Del Río Jiménez's complaint: his board was not consulted.

La Fortaleza says it gave notice on July 17. The outgoing chair says there was no consultation. The Senate, in Thomas Rivera Schatz's voice, says they are not taken into account. El Nuevo Día dated the clash. This magazine does not referee the AAA's internal calendar or invent how many liters dropped at Carraízo that week.

Source: El Nuevo Día. https://www.elnuevodia.com/noticias/gobierno/notas/renuncia-el-presidente-de-la-junta-de-gobierno-de-aaa-por-el-manejo-del-plan-de-racionamiento/