Holding on to home: Puerto Ricans reflect on deciding to stay after the storm

By Griselda Flores and Sofi LaLonde

We spent a week in Puerto Rico in February reporting about life on the island nearly six months after Hurricane Maria, but found a story that is more complicated and nuanced. This audio diary-style piece features testimonials of three people with very different stories about why they stayed on the island during and after Hurricane Maria, and touches on post-hurricane life, emigration and the colonization of the island. We also asked them what it means to be Puerto Rican in this moment of transition and rebuilding.

Audio in Spanish; English translation available here: bit.ly/2HdlMty

This story was reported by Griselda Flores and produced by Sofi LaLonde. Special thanks to Saybian Torres, Marisol Plard-Narvaez and Ibrahim López Hernández for speaking with us, to Kari Lydersen for her editing help and the Medill School of Journalism.

Pictured above: Saybian Torres. Photos by Bill Healy.