Puerto Rico schools amend schedule after key water pipe breaks, affecting tens of thousands

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — More than 270 schools in Puerto Rico are modifying their schedules this week after one of the U.S. territory’s main water pipes recently broke.

More than 165,000 clients in 15 cities and towns are affected, including the capital, San Juan, the island’s Water and Sewer Authority said Tuesday.

The mayor of San Juan declared an emergency and officials in several cities deployed more than 100 water trucks to affected communities after the agency announced the broken pipe late Sunday.

Crews began repairing the 6-foot (1.8-meter) diameter pipe early Tuesday, with officials warning that water shortages could last at least two days.

The Water and Sewer Authority came under fire earlier this year after another malfunction in July left tens of thousands of clients without water in certain areas. That malfunction was blamed on a lack of maintenance and a change in management at the company.

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