title: God of War: Ghost of Sparta

text: "God of War: Ghost of Sparta" received "generally favourable reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic. Nicole Tanner of IGN stated that in terms of gameplay, "there's nothing unique here, but that's not a bad thing." 1UP's Chris Pereira said that the controls are "largely the same" as "Chains of Olympus", but it "is still an extremely well-paced action game." He said that it is put together so well that it is worth playing, "unless you've become truly tired of the franchise". Joystiq's Randy Nelson stated that the scope of the game seems like it "was planned for release on consoles", but "if you were hoping for something really innovative, you're out of luck." Joe Juba of "Game Informer" stated that "the other core fighting mechanics are familiar, but the tweaks go a long way toward improving gameplay". "" stated ""[Ghost of] Sparta" offers an immersive experience on par with many of the best PS3 games". Simon Parkin of Eurogamer praised the battle system as strong, however, he stated "There is a sense that "Ghost of Sparta" is a step back for the series" and claimed that it is "best enjoyed by newcomers" or "those yet to play" "God of War III".


title: God of War: Ghost of Sparta

text: Praising its story, Pereira claimed that it is "a more personal story than the other GOW games, but one that still features the series' signature trademarks", and also said that the sex mini-game is "arguably the most over-the-top of the bunch". Nelson stated that it is "a game that upholds the standard of quality in gameplay, storytelling and sheer wow factor of the series, while also—like "" before it—blurring the lines between portable and console experiences with its amazing presentation." Juba said that it "doesn’t have any mind-blowing moments", but "this isn’t an optional side-story; "Ghost of Sparta" is a must-play for "God of War" fans." GameTrailers said it has a "pretty cool story" that will "definitely feel familiar". Parkin, however, stated the "game's primary problem...is in its in-built focus" and that the series "is principally concerned with endlessly upping the ante." He also claimed that the developers have "[taken] away the sense of wonder" that is expected of a "God of War" game and stated "the remaining components struggle to carry the experience."


title: God of War: Ghost of Sparta

text: In terms of visuals, Tanner stated that the graphics are "better than a big chunk of PS2 games" and that it is the "best-looking game on the PSP thus far." Pereira said that it looks as good if not better than other handheld games available. Nelson said the graphics are "the best you've ever seen on a handheld." He also said that it makes the first two "God of War" games on the PlayStation 2 look dated. GameTrailers said "you'll be treated to the very best visuals the PSP has to offer". Parkin described the set-pieces as "incredible" for a handheld platform, however, he stated they "seem tired" in comparison to the opening scenes of "God of War III".


title: God of War: Ghost of Sparta

text: At E3 2010, "Ghost of Sparta" received nine awards, including "Best Handheld Game", "Best PSP Game", and "PSP Game of Show" from several media outlets, as well as three nominations. "PlayStation: The Official Magazine" awarded it the "Gold Award". Kotaku awarded it "Editor's Choice", stating ""God of War: Ghost of Sparta" is a palm-sized epic video game." At the 2010 Spike Video Game Awards, it received "Best Handheld Game". At the 2011 British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Video Game Awards, "Ghost of Sparta" was a nominee for the "Handheld" award.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Indentured servitude is a form of labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an "indenture", may be entered "voluntarily" for purported eventual compensation or debt repayment, or it may be imposed as a judicial punishment. Historically, it has been used to pay for apprenticeships, typically when an apprentice agreed to work for free for a master tradesman to learn a trade (similar to a modern internship but for a fixed length of time, usually seven years or less). Later it was also used as a way for a person to pay the cost of transportation to colonies in the Americas.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Like any loan, an indenture could be sold; most employers had to depend on middlemen to recruit and transport the workers so indentures (indentured workers) were commonly bought and sold when they arrived at their destinations. Like prices of slaves, their price went up or down depending on supply and demand. When the indenture (loan) was paid off, the worker was free. Sometimes they might be given a plot of land.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Indentured workers could usually marry, move about locally as long as the work got done, read whatever they wanted, and take classes.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Until the late 18th century, indentured servitude was common in British America. It was often a way for Europeans to migrate to the American colonies: they signed an indenture in return for a costly passage. However, the system was also used to exploit Asians (mostly from India and China) who wanted to migrate to the New World. These Asian people were used mainly to construct roads and railway systems. After their indenture expired, the immigrants were free to work for themselves or another employer. At least one economist has suggested that indentured servitude occurred largely as "an institutional response to a capital market imperfection".


title: Indentured servitude

text: In some cases, the indenture was made with a ship's master, who sold the indenture to an employer in the colonies. Most indentured servants worked as farm laborers or domestic servants, although some were apprenticed to craftsmen.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The terms of an indenture were not always enforced by American courts, although runaways were usually sought out and returned to their employer.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Between one-half and two-thirds of European immigrants to the American Colonies between the 1630s and American Revolution came under indentures. However, while almost half the European immigrants to the Thirteen Colonies were indentured servants, at any one time they were outnumbered by workers who had never been indentured, or whose indenture had expired, and thus free wage labor was the more prevalent for Europeans in the colonies. Indentured people were numerically important mostly in the region from Virginia north to New Jersey. Other colonies saw far fewer of them. The total number of European immigrants to all 13 colonies before 1775 was about 500,000; of these 55,000 were involuntary prisoners. Of the 450,000 or so European arrivals who came voluntarily, Tomlins estimates that 48% were indentured. About 75% of these were under the age of 25. The age of adulthood for men was 24 years (not 21); those over 24 generally came on contracts lasting about 3 years. Regarding the children who came, Gary Nash reports that "many of the servants were actually nephews, nieces, cousins and children of friends of emigrating Englishmen, who paid their passage in return for their labor once in America."


title: Indentured servitude

text: Several instances of kidnapping for transportation to the Americas are recorded, such as that of Peter Williamson (1730–1799). As historian Richard Hofstadter pointed out, "Although efforts were made to regulate or check their activities, and they diminished in importance in the eighteenth century, it remains true that a certain small part of the European colonial population of America was brought by force, and a much larger portion came in response to deceit and misrepresentation on the part of the spirits [recruiting agents]." One "spirit" named William Thiene was known to have spirited away 840 people from Britain to the colonies in a single year. Historian Lerone Bennett Jr. notes that "Masters given to flogging often did not care whether their victims were black or white."


title: Indentured servitude

text: Also, during the 18th and early 19th centuries, children from the UK were often kidnapped and sold into indentured labor in the American and Caribbean colonies (often without any indentures).


title: Indentured servitude

text: Indentured servitude was also used by governments in Britain as a punishment for captured prisoners of war in rebellions and civil wars. Oliver Cromwell sent into indentured service thousands of prisoners captured in the 1648 Battle of Preston and the 1651 Battle of Worcester. King James II acted similarly after the Monmouth Rebellion in 1685, and use of such measures continued into the 18th century.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Indentured servants could not marry without the permission of their master, were sometimes subject to physical punishment and did not receive legal favor from the courts. Female indentured servants in particular might be raped and/or sexually abused by their masters. If children were produced the labour would be extended by 2 years. Cases of successful prosecution for these crimes were very uncommon, as indentured servants were unlikely to have access to a magistrate, and social pressure to avoid such brutality could vary by geography and cultural norm. The situation was particularly difficult for indentured women, because in both low social class and gender, they were believed to be particularly prone to vice, making legal redress unusual.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The American Revolution severely limited immigration to the United States, but economic historians dispute its long-term impact. Sharon Salinger argues that the economic crisis that followed the war made long-term labor contracts unattractive. His analysis of Philadelphia's population shows how the percentage of bound citizens fell from 17% to 6.4% over the course of the war. William Miller posits a more moderate theory, stating that "the Revolution...wrought disturbances upon white servitude. But these were temporary rather than lasting". David Galenson supports this theory by proposing that the numbers of British indentured servants never recovered, and that Europeans from other nationalities replaced them.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Indentured servitude began its decline after Bacon’s Rebellion. Bacon's Rebellion was a servant uprising against the government of Colonial Virginia. This was due to multiple factors, such as the treatment of servants, support of native tribes in the surrounding area, a refusal to expand the amount of land an indentured servant could work by the colonial government, and inequality between the upper and lower class in colonial society. Indentured servitude was the primary source of labor for early American colonists up until the rebellion. Little changed in the immediate aftermath of Bacon's Rebellion; however, the rebellion did cause a general distrust of servant labor and fear of future rebellion. The fear of indentured servitude would eventually cement itself into the hearts of Americans, leading towards the reliance on enslaved Africans. This helped to ingrain the idea of racial segregation and unite white Americans under race rather than economic or social class. Doing so would prevent the potential for future rebellion and change the way that agriculture was approached in the future.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The American and British governments passed several laws that helped foster the decline of indentures. The UK Parliament's Passenger Vessels Act 1803 regulated travel conditions aboard ships to make transportation more expensive, so as to hinder landlords' tenants seeking a better life. An American law passed in 1833 abolished the imprisonment of debtors, which made prosecuting runaway servants more difficult, increasing the risk of indenture contract purchases. The 13th Amendment, passed in the wake of the American Civil War, made indentured servitude illegal in the United States.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Through its introduction, the details regarding indentured labor varied across import and export regions and most overseas contracts were made before the voyage with the understanding that prospective migrants were competent enough to make overseas contracts on their own account and that they preferred to have a contract before the voyage.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Most labor contracts made were in increments of five years, with the opportunity to extend another five years. Many contracts also provided free passage home after the dictated labor was completed. However, there were generally no policies regulating employers once the labor hours were completed, which led to frequent ill-treatment.


title: Indentured servitude

text: In 1643, the European population of Barbados was 37,200 (86% of the population). During the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, at least 10,000 Scottish and Irish prisoners of war were transported as indentured laborers to the colonies.


title: Indentured servitude

text: A half million Europeans went as indentured servants to the Caribbean (primarily the English-speaking islands of the Caribbean) before 1840.


title: Indentured servitude

text: In 1838, with the abolition of slavery at its onset, the British were in the process of transporting a million Indians out of India and into the Caribbean to take the place of the recently freed Africans (freed in 1833) in indentureship. Women, looking for what they believed would be a better life in the colonies, were specifically sought after and recruited at a much higher rate than men due to the high population of men already in the colonies. However, women had to prove their status as single and eligible to emigrate, as married women could not leave without their husbands. Many women seeking escape from abusive relationships were willing to take that chance. The Indian Immigration Act of 1883 prevented women from exiting India as widowed or single in order to escape. Arrival in the colonies brought unexpected conditions of poverty, homelessness, and little to no food as the high numbers of emigrants overwhelmed the small villages and flooded the labor market. Many were forced into signing labor contracts that exposed them to the hard field labor on the plantation. Additionally, on arrival to the plantation, single women were 'assigned' a man as they were not allowed to live alone. The subtle difference between slavery and indenture-ship is best seen here as women were still subjected to the control of the plantation owners as well as their newly assigned 'partner'.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The Indian indenture system was a system of indenture, a form of debt bondage, by which two million Indians called coolies were transported to various colonies of European powers to provide labour for the (mainly sugar) plantations. It started from the end of slavery in 1833 and continued until 1920. This resulted in the development of a large Indian diaspora, which spread from the Indian Ocean (i.e. Réunion and Mauritius) to Pacific Ocean (i.e. Fiji), as well as the growth of Indo-Caribbean and Indo-African population.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The British wanted local black Africans to work in Natal as workers. But the locals refused, and as a result, the British introduced the Indian indenture system, resulting in a permanent Indian South African presence. On 18 January 1826, the Government of the French Indian Ocean island of Réunion laid down terms for the introduction of Indian labourers to the colony. Each man was required to appear before a magistrate and declare that he was going voluntarily. The contract was for five years with pay of ₹8 (12¢ US) per month and rations provided labourers had been transported from Pondicherry and Karaikal. The first attempt at importing Indian labour into Mauritius, in 1829, ended in failure, but by 1834, with abolition of slavery throughout most of the British Empire, transportation of Indian labour to the island gained pace. By 1838, 25,000 Indian labourers had been transported to Mauritius.


title: Indentured servitude

text: After the end of slavery, the West Indian sugar colonies tried the use of emancipated slaves, families from Ireland, Germany and Malta and Portuguese from Madeira. All these efforts failed to satisfy the labour needs of the colonies due to high mortality of the new arrivals and their reluctance to continue working at the end of their indenture. On 16 November 1844, the British Indian Government legalised emigration to Jamaica, Trinidad and Demerara (Guyana). The first ship, , sailed from Calcutta for British Guiana on 13 January 1838, and arrived in Berbice on 5 May 1838. Transportation to the Caribbean stopped in 1848 due to problems in the sugar industry and resumed in Demerara and Trinidad in 1851 and Jamaica in 1860.


title: Indentured servitude

text: This system of labour was coined by contemporaries at the time as a "new system of slavery", a term later used by historian Hugh Tinker in his largely influential book of the same name.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The Indian indenture system was finally banned in 1917. According to "The Economist", "When the Indian Legislative Council finally ended indenture...it did so because of pressure from Indian nationalists and declining profitability, rather than from humanitarian concerns."


title: Indentured servitude

text: Convicts transported to the Australian colonies before the 1840s often found themselves hired out in a form of indentured labor.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The Van Diemen's Land Company used skilled indentured labor for periods of seven years or less. A similar scheme for the Swan River area of Western Australia existed between 1829 and 1832.


title: Indentured servitude

text: During the 1860s planters in Australia, Fiji, New Caledonia, and the Samoa Islands, in need of laborers, encouraged a trade in long-term indentured labor called "blackbirding". At the height of the labor trade, more than one-half the adult male population of several of the islands worked abroad.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Over a period of 40 years, from the mid-19th century to the early 20th century, labor for the sugar-cane fields of Queensland, Australia included an element of coercive recruitment and indentured servitude of the 62,000 South Sea Islanders. The workers came mainly from Melanesia – mainly from the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu – with a small number from Polynesian and Micronesian areas such as Samoa, the Gilbert Islands (subsequently known as Kiribati) and the Ellice Islands (subsequently known as Tuvalu). They became collectively known as "Kanakas".


title: Indentured servitude

text: It remains unknown how many Islanders the trade controversially kidnapped. Whether the system legally recruited Islanders, persuaded, deceived, coerced or forced them to leave their homes and travel by ship to Queensland remains difficult to determine. Official documents and accounts from the period often conflict with the oral tradition passed down to the descendants of workers. Stories of blatantly violent kidnapping tend to relate to the first 10–15 years of the trade.


title: Indentured servitude

text: Australia deported many of these Islanders back to their places of origin in the period 1906–1908 under the provisions of the Pacific Island Labourers Act 1901.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The Australian administrated territories of Papua and New Guinea (joined after the Second World War to form Papua New Guinea) were the last jurisdictions in the world to use indentured servitude.


title: Indentured servitude

text: A significant number of construction projects in British East Africa and South Africa, required vast quantities of labor, exceeding the availability or willingness of local tribesmen. Indentured Indians from India were imported, for such projects as the Uganda Railway, as farm labor, and as miners. They and their descendants formed a significant portion of the population and economy of Kenya and Uganda, although not without engendering resentment from others. Idi Amin's expulsion of the "Asians" from Uganda in 1972 was an expulsion of Indo-Africans.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The majority of the population of Mauritius are descendants of Indian indentured labourers brought in between 1834 and 1921. Initially brought to work the sugar estates following the abolition of slavery in the British Empire an estimated half a million indentured laborers were present on the island during this period. Aapravasi Ghat, in the bay at Port Louis and now a UNESCO site, was the first British colony to serve as a major reception centre for indentured Indians from India who came to work on plantations following the abolition of slavery.


title: Indentured servitude

text: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948) declares in Article 4 "No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms". More specifically, it is dealt with by article 1(a) of the United Nations 1956 Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery.


title: Indentured servitude

text: However, only national legislation can establish the unlawfulness of indentured labor in a specific jurisdiction. In the United States, the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (VTVPA) of 2000 extended servitude to cover peonage as well as Involuntary Servitude.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: The national flag of Turkey, officially the Turkish flag (), is a red flag featuring a white star and crescent. The flag is often called "the red flag" (), and is referred to as "the red banner" () in the Turkish national anthem. The current Turkish flag is directly derived from the late Ottoman flag, which had been adopted in the late 18th century and acquired its final form in 1844. The measures, geometric proportions, and exact tone of red of the flag of Turkey were legally standardized with the Turkish Flag Law on 29 May 1936.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: The star and crescent design appears on Ottoman flags beginning in the late 18th or early 19th century. The white star and crescent moon on red as the flag of the Ottoman Empire was introduced 1844.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: After the declaration of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, the new administrative regime maintained the last flag of the Ottoman Empire. Proportional standardizations were introduced in the Turkish Flag Law of 1936.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: In accounting for the crescent and star symbol, the Ottomans sometimes referred to a legendary dream of the eponymous founder of the Ottoman house, Osman I, in which he is reported to have seen a moon rising from the breast of Sheikh Edebali whose daughter he sought to marry. "When full, it descended into his own breast. Then from his loins there sprang a tree, which as it grew came to cover the whole world with the shadow of its green and beautiful branches." Beneath it Osman saw the world spread out before him, surmounted by the crescent.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: Fundamentals of the Turkish flag were laid down by Turkish Flag Law No. 2994 on 29 May 1936 during the Republic period of Turkey. Turkish Flag Regulation No. 2/7175 dated 28 July 1937, and Supplementary Regulation No. 11604/2 dated 29 July 1939, were enacted to describe how the flag law would be implemented. The Turkish Flag Law No. 2893 dated 22 September 1983, and Published in the Official Gazette on 24 September 1983, was promulgated six months after its publication. According to Article 9 of Law No. 2893, a statute including the fundamentals of the implementation was also published.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: Article 5 of the Flag Law of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus states that "The Turkish Flag shall continue to be the national flag of the Turkish People of Cyprus". According to the same article, the flag of Turkey can be flown from buildings of the Security Forces, by Government Departments, from the premises of public institutions and establishments and others with the flag of Northern Cyprus. Article 10 of the same law outlaws insults against the flag of Turkey and Article 11 punishes them if they were carried out on purpose.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: In an RGB color space, the red color of the Turkish flag is composed of 89% red, 3.9% green, and 9% blue (in hexadecimal color code #E30A17). In a CMYK color space, it is composed of 0% cyan, 95.6% magenta, 89.9% yellow and 11% black. It has a hue angle of 356.4 degrees, a saturation of 91.6%, and a lightness of 46.5%. The red color on the Turkish flag is "vivid red" and this color can be obtained by blending #FF142E with #C70000. The closest websafe color is: #d11919.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: The specification below, given by Turkish Flag Law, implies that the distance between (the left edge of) the inner circle of the crescent and a vertical line connecting the two pointed ends of the crescent is G = 0.34875 G; thus, the left point of the star intrudes about 0.0154 G beyond that line.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: The flag is always displayed prominently in state institutions from schools to ministries. The Beştepe Presidential Complex, Parliament, ministries, schools, military, councils, governors buildings, muhtar's offices, bridges, airports, and every state owned building in the country features one or more flags of Turkey.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: On military uniforms the flag is displayed on a patch either on the right shoulder or on the front of the uniform. Helmets can display the flag too on the front or the sides. Flight suits, navy uniforms, Jandarma uniforms and others feature the flag on shoulder patches or helmets. Along with uniforms several emblems and patches display the flag with prominence or minor alteration.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: Turkey celebrates many national events such as battle victories and Republic Day. People come to the streets with their flags to celebrate such days. On other occasions the public uses the flag heavily when protesting or commemorating certain events or deaths respectively. Statues and monuments may be draped with the flag while marches and songs are played. On television screens the flag is displayed in celebration of such events too with the portrait of Atatürk next to it. The flag may also be presented at half staff in mourning of tragic events or important days.


title: Flag of Turkey

text: The flag has a prominent display on state and military funerals. A burial flag is always draped over the deceased coffin and is carried by the military police or relatives of the deceased. Soldiers of all types and the Presidential Guard also carry the coffin at times. Many attendees also feature the flag on their lapels along with an image of the deceased.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The first generation of the BMW 4 Series consists of the BMW F32 (coupé version), BMW F33 (convertible version) and BMW F36 (five-door liftback version, marketed as 'Gran Coupé') compact executive cars. The F32/F33/F36 was produced from 2014 to 2020 and is often collectively referred to as the F32.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The F32 was introduced as the successor to the E92/E93 coupé/convertible models of the fifth-generation 3 Series range. The F32 is produced alongside - and shares many features with - the F30 3 Series. As with the F30 3 Series range, the F32/F33/F36 is powered by turbocharged petrol and diesel engines with three cylinders (petrol only), four cylinders, and six cylinders.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The high performance F82/F83 M4 models were introduced in early 2014. They are powered by the S55 turbocharged straight-six engine.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: Official details of the "Concept 4 Series" were released in December 2012, detailing the intention to replace the E92 3 Series coupé with a new 4 Series line. In 2013, the concept vehicle (called the Concept 4 Series Coupé) was unveiled at the North American International Auto Show. The concept car was designed by Won Kyu Kang.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: Compared with its E92 predecessor, the F32's wheelbase is longer, the overall length is increased by and the width is increased by . The front track width is and the rear track width is , increases of and respectively.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The coupé models were unveiled in September 2013 at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Nicolas Huet was the lead designer of the F32 coupe.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The launch models consisted of the petrol 428i and 435i, and the diesel 420d. In the remainder of 2013, the following models were added: 420i, 420d, 425d, 430d and 435d. In 2014, the 418d model was added. Most models were available with all-wheel drive ("xDrive").


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The convertible body style was unveiled at the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show, followed by the 2013 LA Auto Show.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: Its international launch was in Las Vegas in January 2014. The launch models were the petrol-engined 428i and 435i, and the diesel 420d. All-wheel drive (xDrive) became available a few months after the launch.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: Like its predecessor, the F33 has a three-part retractable hardtop. It includes noise-absorbing headliner and air curtains. A wind deflector and neck warmers were available as options.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The 4 Series Gran Coupé was unveiled at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, followed by 2014 New York International Auto Show and the 13th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition in 2014. Production of the Gran Coupé began in the Dingolfing plant in July 2014.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: As per the larger 6 Series Gran Coupé (F06), the F36 has coupé styling with a fastback rear. However, the F36 also includes a C-pillar located behind the rear doors. Compared with the F30 sedan, the F36 has less rear headroom and the same cargo volume. With the rear seats folded down, the F36 has a cargo volume of .


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The launch models were the petrol-engined 420i, 428i and 435i, and the diesel 418d and 420d. The 435i Gran Coupé is approximately heavier than the equivalent F30 335i sedan.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: Optional "BMW M Performance Parts" were unveiled at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show. The available upgrades included exhausts, power upgrades, bodykit, limited slip differential, steering wheels and interior trims.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: Up until 2014, BMW M models used the same model codes as the rest of the model range. However, the F32/F33/F36 generation was one of the first where the M models use separate model codes: F82 for the coupé and F83 for the convertible.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The F82/F83 M4 is powered by the S55 twin-turbocharged straight-6 engine rated at and . The gearbox is either a 6-speed manual (with throttle blip on downshifts) or a 7-speed dual clutch transmission (M-DCT).


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The M4 also features an electronically controlled limited-slip differential, electric steering, additional bolted joints between the axle subframe and the body sills, aluminium stiffening plate and a five-link rear suspension constructed from aluminium. Carbon-fibre is used for the roof, bootlid, strut brace and driveshaft. Unusually, the suspension subframes are directly connected to the chassis without rubber bushings. An optional head-up display comes with additional M-specific functions such as a gear display, rev counter and Optimum Shift Indicator.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The concept version of the M4 Coupé was unveiled at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance on 15 August 2013, followed production version being unveiled at the 2014 North American International Auto Show on 13 January 2014.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The production version of the M4 convertible was also unveiled at the 2014 New York International Auto Show.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The facelift (LCI) changes were unveiled on 16 January 2017, with the first pictures of the refreshed Coupé (F32 LCI) shown in the new color Snapper Rocks Blue (turquoise blue), and the Convertible (F33 LCI) shown in the also new, Sunset Orange colour (bright orange). The Gran Coupé (F36 LCI) model was shown in a silver colour. Major changes include:


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The M4 DTM was developed in 2013 to replace the E92 M3 DTM, has been raced in DTM from 2014 to the present. It was designed by BMW chief engineer Dominic Harlow and unveiled in official ITR tests in Budapest. The M4 DTM replaced the retired BMW M3 DTM at the end of the 2013 season.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: In its debut 2014 season, Marco Wittmann won the Drivers' Championship in the M4 and Team RMG won the Teams' Championship. In the 2016 season, Marco Wittman again won the Drivers' Championship in the M4.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The M4 were used as a safety car at DTM races from 2014–present. The M4 DTM Safety Car features Recaro racing seats, a roll bar, bonnet with "motorsport lock", LED lights on the roof and LED lights on the front apron.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The M4 was used as a safety car at MotoGP races from 2014–present. The car was unveiled at the 2014 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix. It features Recaro racing seats, a roll bar, bonnet with motorsport lock, LED lights at roof and front apron, main electricity switch at bonnet, removal of the rear seat, fuel pump system, a fire extinguisher and a race display on the steering wheel.


title: BMW 4 Series (F32)

text: The F32 coupé and F82 M4 coupé are produced in Munich, with production beginning in July 2013. The F33 convertible is produced in Regensburg, beginning in November 2013. The F36 Gran Coupé is produced in Dingolfing.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The Circus Maximus (Latin for "largest circus"; Italian: "Circo Massimo") is an ancient Roman chariot-racing stadium and mass entertainment venue in Rome, Italy. In the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills, it was the first and largest stadium in ancient Rome and its later Empire. It measured in length and in width and could accommodate over 150,000 spectators. In its fully developed form, it became the model for circuses throughout the Roman Empire. The site is now a public park.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The Circus was Rome's largest venue for "ludi", public games connected to Roman religious festivals. "Ludi" were sponsored by leading Romans or the Roman state for the benefit of the Roman people ("populus Romanus") and gods. Most were held annually or at annual intervals on the Roman calendar. Others might be given to fulfil a religious vow, such as the games in celebration of a triumph. In Roman tradition, the earliest triumphal "ludi" at the Circus were vowed by Tarquin the Proud to Jupiter in the late Regal era for his victory over Pometia.


title: Circus Maximus

text: "Ludi" ranged in duration and scope from one-day or even half-day events to spectacular multi-venue celebrations held over several days, with religious ceremonies and public feasts, horse and chariot racing, athletics, plays and recitals, beast-hunts and gladiator fights. Some included public executions. The greater "ludi" (meaning sport or game in Latin) at the Circus began with a flamboyant parade "(pompa circensis)", much like the triumphal procession, which marked the purpose of the games and introduced the participants.


title: Circus Maximus

text: During the Roman Republic, the aediles organized the games. The most costly and complex of the "ludi" offered opportunities to assess an aedile's competence, generosity, and fitness for higher office. Some Circus events, however, seem to have been relatively small and intimate affairs. In 167 BC, "flute players, scenic artists and dancers" performed on a temporary stage, probably erected between the two central seating banks. Others were enlarged at enormous expense to fit the entire space. A "venatio" held there in 169 BC, one of several in the 2nd century, employed "63 leopards and 40 bears and elephants", with spectators presumably kept safe by a substantial barrier.


title: Circus Maximus

text: As Rome's provinces expanded, existing "ludi" were embellished and new "ludi" invented by politicians who competed for divine and popular support. By the late Republic, "ludi" were held on 57 days of the year; an unknown number of these would have required full use of the Circus. On many other days, charioteers and jockeys would need to practise on its track. Otherwise, it would have made a convenient corral for the animals traded in the nearby Forum Boarium, just outside the starting gate. Beneath the outer stands, next to the Circus' multiple entrances, were workshops and shops. When no games were being held, the Circus at the time of Catullus (mid-1st century BC) was probably "a dusty open space with shops and booths ... a colourful crowded disreputable area" frequented by "prostitutes, jugglers, fortune tellers and low-class performing artists."


title: Circus Maximus

text: Rome's emperors met the growing popular demand for regular "ludi" and the need for more specialised venues, as essential obligations of their office and cult. Over the several centuries of its development, the Circus Maximus became Rome's paramount specialist venue for chariot races. By the late 1st century AD, the Colosseum had been built to host most of the city's gladiator shows and smaller beast-hunts, and most track-athletes competed at the purpose-designed Stadium of Domitian, though long-distance foot races were still held at the Circus. Eventually, 135 days of the year were devoted to "ludi".


title: Circus Maximus

text: Even at the height of its development as a chariot-racing circuit, the circus remained the most suitable space in Rome for religious processions on a grand scale and was the most popular venue for large-scale "venationes"; in the late 3rd century, the emperor Probus laid on a spectacular Circus show in which beasts were hunted through a veritable forest of trees, on a specially built stage. With the advent of Christianity as the official religion of the Empire, "ludi" gradually fell out of favour. The last known beast-hunt at the Circus Maximus took place in 523, and the last known races there were held by Totila in 549.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The Circus Maximus was sited on the level ground of the Valley of Murcia "(Vallis Murcia)", between Rome's Aventine and Palatine Hills. In Rome's early days, the valley would have been rich agricultural land, prone to flooding from the river Tiber and the stream which divided the valley. The stream was probably bridged at an early date, at the two points where the track had to cross it, and the earliest races would have been held within an agricultural landscape, "with nothing more than turning posts, banks where spectators could sit, and some shrines and sacred spots".


title: Circus Maximus

text: In Livy's "History of Rome", the first Etruscan king of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, built raised, wooden perimeter seating at the Circus for Rome's highest echelons (the equites and patricians), probably midway along the Palatine straight, with an awning against the sun and rain. His grandson, Tarquinius Superbus, added the first seating for citizen-commoners (plebs, or plebeians), either adjacent or on the opposite, Aventine side of the track. Otherwise, the Circus was probably still little more than a trackway through surrounding farmland. By this time, it may have been drained but the wooden stands and seats would have frequently rotted and been rebuilt. The turning posts ("metae"), each made of three conical stone pillars, may have been the earliest permanent Circus structures; an open drainage canal between the posts would have served as a dividing barrier.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The games' sponsor (Latin "editor)" usually sat beside the images of attending gods, on a conspicuous, elevated stand ("pulvinar") but seats at the track's perimeter offered the best, most dramatic close-ups. In 494 BC (very early in the Republican era) the dictator Manius Valerius Maximus and his descendants were granted rights to a curule chair at the southeastern turn, an excellent viewpoint for the thrills and spills of chariot racing. In the 190s BC, stone track-side seating was built, exclusively for senators.


title: Circus Maximus

text: Permanent wooden starting stalls were built in 329 BC. They were gated, brightly painted, and staggered to equalise the distances from each start place to the central barrier. In theory, they might have accommodated up to 25 four-horse chariots (Quadrigas) abreast but when team-racing was introduced, they were widened, and their number reduced. By the late Republican or early Imperial era, there were twelve stalls. Their divisions were fronted by herms that served as stops for spring-loaded gates, so that twelve light-weight, four-horse or two-horse chariots could be simultaneously released onto the track. The stalls were allocated by lottery, and the various racing teams were identified by their colors. Typically, there were seven laps per race. From at least 174 BC, they were counted off using large sculpted eggs. In 33 BC, an additional system of large bronze dolphin-shaped lap counters was added, positioned well above the central dividing barrier "(euripus)" for maximum visibility.


title: Circus Maximus

text: Julius Caesar's development of the Circus, commencing around 50 BC, extended the seating tiers to run almost the entire circuit of the track, barring the starting gates and a processional entrance at the semi-circular end. The track measured approximately 621 m (2,037 ft) in length and 150 m (387 ft) in breadth. A canal between the track perimeter and its seating protected spectators and help drain the track. The inner third of the seating formed a trackside "cavea". Its front sections along the central straight were reserved for senators, and those immediately behind for "equites". The outer tiers, two thirds of the total, were meant for Roman plebs and non-citizens. They were timber-built, with wooden-framed service buildings, shops and entrance-ways beneath. The total number of seats is uncertain, but was probably in the order of 150,000; Pliny the Elder's estimate of 250,000 seating places is unlikely. The wooden bleachers were damaged in a fire of 31 BC, either during or after construction.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The fire damage of 31 was probably repaired by Augustus (Caesar's successor and Rome's first emperor). He modestly claimed credit only for an obelisk and "pulvinar" at the site but both were major projects. Ever since its quarrying, long before Rome existed, the obelisk had been sacred to Egyptian Sun-gods. Augustus had it brought from Heliopolis at enormous expense, and erected midway along the dividing barrier of the Circus. It was Rome's first obelisk, an exotically sacred object and a permanent reminder of Augustus' victory over his Roman foes and their Egyptian allies in the recent civil wars. Thanks to him, Rome had secured both a lasting peace and a new Egyptian Province. The "pulvinar" was built on monumental scale, a shrine or temple ("aedes") raised high above the trackside seats. Sometimes, while games were in progress, Augustus watched from there, alongside the gods. Occasionally, his family would join him there. This is the Circus described by Dionysius of Halicarnassus as "one of the most beautiful and admirable structures in Rome", with "entrances and ascents for the spectators at every shop, so that the countless thousands of people may enter and depart without inconvenience."


title: Circus Maximus

text: The site remained prone to flooding, probably through the starting gates, until Claudius made improvements there; they probably included an extramural anti-flooding embankment. Fires in the crowded, wooden perimeter workshops and bleachers were a far greater danger. A fire of 36 AD seems to have started in a basket-maker's workshop under the stands, on the Aventine side; the emperor Tiberius compensated various small businesses there for their losses. In AD 64, during Nero's reign, fire broke out at the semi-circular end of the Circus, swept through the stands and shops, and destroyed much of the city. Games and festivals continued at the Circus, which was rebuilt over several years to the same footprint and design.


title: Circus Maximus

text: By the late 1st century AD, the central dividing barrier comprised a series of water basins, or else a single watercourse open in some places and bridged over in others. It offered opportunities for artistic embellishment and decorative swagger, and included the temples and statues of various deities, fountains, and refuges for those assistants involved in more dangerous circus activities, such as beast-hunts and the recovery of casualties during races.


title: Circus Maximus

text: In AD 81 the Senate built a triple arch honoring Titus at the semi-circular end of the Circus, to replace or augment a former processional entrance. The emperor Domitian built a new, multi-storey palace on the Palatine, connected somehow to the Circus; he likely watched the games in autocratic style, from high above and barely visible to those below. Repairs to fire damage during his reign may already have been under way before his assassination.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The risk of further fire-damage, coupled with Domitian's fate, may have prompted Trajan's decision to rebuild the Circus entirely in stone, and provide a new pulvinar in the stands where Rome's emperor could be seen and honoured as part of the Roman community, alongside their gods. Under Trajan, the Circus Maximus found its definitive form, which was unchanged thereafter save for some monumental additions by later emperors, an extensive, planned rebuilding of the starting gate area under Caracalla, and repairs and renewals to existing fabric. Of these, Pliny claims that Trajan's works gained a further 5,000 seats. Some repairs were unforeseen and extensive, such as those carried out in Diocletian's reign, after the collapse of a seating section killed some 13,000 people.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The southeastern turn of the track ran between two shrines which may have predated the Circus' formal development. One, at the outer southeast perimeter, was dedicated to the valley's eponymous goddess Murcia, an obscure deity associated with Venus, the myrtle shrub, a sacred spring, the stream that divided the valley, and the lesser peak of the Aventine Hill. The other was at the southeastern turning-post; where there was an underground shrine to Consus, a minor god of grain-stores, connected to the grain-goddess Ceres and to the underworld. According to Roman tradition, Romulus discovered this shrine shortly after the founding of Rome. He invented the Consualia festival, as a way of gathering his Sabine neighbours at a celebration that included horse-races and drinking. During these distractions, Romulus's men then abducted the Sabine daughters as brides. Thus the famous Roman myth of the Rape of the Sabine women had as its setting the Circus and the Consualia.


title: Circus Maximus

text: In this quasi-legendary era, horse or chariot races would have been held at the Circus site. The track width may have been determined by the distance between Murcia's and Consus' shrines at the southeastern end, and its length by the distance between these two shrines and Hercules' Ara Maxima, supposedly older than Rome itself and sited behind the Circus' starting place. The position of Consus' shrine at the turn of the track recalls the placing of shrines to Roman Neptune's Greek equivalent, Poseidon, in Greek hippodromes. In later developments, the altar of Consus, as one of the Circus' patron deities, was incorporated into the fabric of the south-eastern turning post. When Murcia's stream was partly built over, to form a dividing barrier (the "spina" or "euripus") between the turning posts, her shrine was either retained or rebuilt. In the Late Imperial period, both the southeastern turn and the circus itself were sometimes known as "Vallis Murcia". The symbols used to count race-laps also held religious significance; Castor and Pollux, who were born from an egg, were patrons of horses, horsemen, and the equestrian order "(equites)". Likewise, the later use of dolphin-shaped lap counters reinforced associations between the races, swiftness, and Neptune, as god of earthquakes and horses; the Romans believed dolphins to be the swiftest of all creatures. When the Romans adopted the Phrygian Great Mother as an ancestral deity, a statue of her on lion-back was erected within the circus, probably on the dividing barrier.


title: Circus Maximus

text: Sun and Moon cults were probably represented at the Circus from its earliest phases. Their importance grew with the introduction of Roman cult to Apollo, and the development of Stoic and solar monism as a theological basis for the Roman Imperial cult. In the Imperial era, the Sun-god was divine patron of the Circus and its games. His sacred obelisk towered over the arena, set in the central barrier, close to his temple and the finishing line. The Sun-god was the ultimate, victorious charioteer, driving his four-horse chariot ("quadriga") through the heavenly circuit from sunrise to sunset. His partner Luna drove her two-horse chariot ("biga"); together, they represented the predictable, orderly movement of the cosmos and the circuit of time, which found analogy in the Circus track. Luna's temple, which was probably built long before Apollo's, burned down in the Great Fire of 64 AD and was probably not replaced. Her cult was closely identified with that of Diana, who seems to have been represented in the processions that started Circus games, and with Sol Indiges, usually identified as her brother. After the loss of her temple, her cult may have been transferred to Sol's temple on the dividing barrier, or one beside it; both would have been open to the sky.


title: Circus Maximus

text: Temples to several deities overlooked the Circus; most are now lost. The temples to Ceres and Flora stood close together on the Aventine, more or less opposite the Circus' starting gate, which remained under Hercules' protection. Further southeast along the Aventine was a temple to Luna, the moon goddess. Aventine temples to Venus Obsequens, Mercury and Dis (or perhaps Summanus) stood on the slopes above the southeast turn. On the Palatine hill, opposite to Ceres's temple, stood the temple to Magna Mater and, more or less opposite Luna's temple, one to the sun-god Apollo.


title: Circus Maximus

text: Several festivals, some of uncertain foundation and date, were held at the Circus in historical times. The Consualia, with its semi-mythical establishment by Romulus, and the Cerealia, the major festival of Ceres, were probably older than the earliest historically attested "Roman Games" "(Ludi Romani)" held at the Circus in honour of Jupiter in 366 BC. In the early Imperial era, Ovid describes the opening of Cerealia (mid to late April) with a horse race at the Circus, followed by the nighttime release of foxes into the stadium, their tails ablaze with lighted torches. Some early connection is likely between Ceres as goddess of grain crops and Consus as a god of grain storage and patron of the Circus.


title: Circus Maximus

text: After the 6th century, the Circus fell into disuse and decay. The lower levels, ever prone to flooding, were gradually buried under waterlogged alluvial soil and accumulated debris, so that the original track is now buried 6 meters beneath the modern surface. In the 11th century, the Circus was "replaced by dwellings rented out by the congregation of Saint-Guy." In the 12th century, a watercourse was dug there to drain the soil, and by the 16th century the area was used as a market garden. During the renaissance, the site was one of many used as a convenient quarry for good quality building stone. Many of the Circus's standing structures survived these changes; in 1587, two obelisks were removed from the central barrier by Pope Sixtus V, and one of these was re-sited at the Piazza del Popolo. In 1852 a gas works was built on the site by the Anglo-Italian Gas Society. It remained in situ until 1910 when it was relocated to the edge of Rome. Mid 19th century workings at the circus site uncovered the lower parts of a seating tier and outer portico. Since then, a series of excavations has exposed further sections of the seating, curved turn and central barrier but further exploration has been limited by the scale, depth and waterlogging of the site.


title: Circus Maximus

text: The Circus site now functions as a large park area, in the centre of the city. It is often used for concerts and meetings. On 2 July 2005, the Rome concert of Live 8 was held there. On 14 July 2007, the British rock band Genesis performed a concert before an estimated audience of 500,000 people. This concert was filmed and released on a DVD called When in Rome 2007. The Rolling Stones played there in front of 71,527 people on June 22, 2014 for the Italian date of their 14 On Fire tour. The Circus has also hosted victory celebrations, following the Italian World Cup 2006 victory and the A.S. Roma Serie A victory in 1983 and 2001. In May 2019, a new virtual/augmented reality experience, the "Circo Maximo Experience", opened on the site, taking visitors on a journey through the site and its history.


title: The Killer (upcoming film)

text: The Killer is an upcoming American neo-noir action thriller film directed by David Fincher and written by Andrew Kevin Walker, based on the French graphic novel series of the same name by Alexis Nolent. It stars Michael Fassbender and Tilda Swinton.


title: The Killer (upcoming film)

text: In November 2007, it was announced that David Fincher would be directing an adaptation of the Matz French comic book "The Killer", with Allesandro Camon writing the script, Brad Pitt's Plan B Entertainment producing and Paramount Pictures distributing. By February 2021, Fincher had taken the project to Netflix, where he had signed an overall deal, with Andrew Kevin Walker now writing the script and Michael Fassbender circling the lead role. By June, it was reported that Fincher was planning to begin filming in November 2021 in Paris, while the involvement of cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt was also confirmed. Tilda Swinton joined the cast in October.


title: The Killer (upcoming film)

text: Principal photography began in early November 2021 in Paris; filming was also expected to take place in New Orleans and the Dominican Republic. In January 2022, it was confirmed that filming would take place in St. Charles, Illinois in March for ten days. On March 28, 2022, it was announced that filming had wrapped.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Hurricane Maria was a deadly Category 5 hurricane that devastated the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly Dominica, Saint Croix, and Puerto Rico. It is regarded as the worst natural disaster in recorded history to affect those islands. The most intense tropical cyclone worldwide in 2017, Maria was the thirteenth named storm, eighth consecutive hurricane, fourth major hurricane, second Category 5 hurricane, and deadliest storm of the extremely active 2017 Atlantic hurricane season. Maria was the deadliest Atlantic hurricane since Mitch in 1998, and the tenth most intense Atlantic hurricane on record. Total monetary losses are estimated at upwards of $91.61 billion (2017 USD), mostly in Puerto Rico, ranking it as the third-costliest tropical cyclone on record.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Maria became a tropical storm on September 16 east of the Lesser Antilles and rapidly intensified to Category 5 strength just before making landfall on Dominica on September 18. After crossing the island, Maria achieved its peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 175 mph (280 km/h) and a pressure of 908 mbar (hPa; 26.81 inHg). On September 20, an eyewall replacement cycle weakened Maria to a high-end Category 4 hurricane by the time it struck Puerto Rico. Passing north of The Bahamas, Maria gradually degraded and weakened, swinging eastward over the open Atlantic and dissipating by October 2.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Maria brought catastrophic devastation to the entirety of Dominica, destroying housing stock and infrastructure beyond repair, and practically eradicating the island's lush vegetation. The neighboring islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique endured widespread flooding, damaged roofs, and uprooted trees. Puerto Rico suffered catastrophic damage and a major humanitarian crisis; most of the island's population suffered from flooding and a lack of resources, compounded by a slow relief process. The storm caused the worst electrical blackout in US history, which persisted for several months. Maria also landed in the northeast Caribbean during relief efforts from another Category 5 hurricane, Irma, which crossed the region two weeks prior.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The total death toll is 3,059: an estimated 2,975 in Puerto Rico, 65 in Dominica, 5 in the Dominican Republic, 4 in Guadeloupe, 4 in the contiguous United States, 3 in the United States Virgin Islands, and 3 in Haiti. Maria was the deadliest hurricane in Dominica since the 1834 Padre Ruíz hurricane and the deadliest in Puerto Rico since the 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane. This makes it the deadliest named Atlantic hurricane of the 21st century to date.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Maria originated from a tropical wave that left the western coast of Africa on September 12. Gradual organization occurred as it progressed westward across the tropical Atlantic under the influence of a mid-level ridge that was located to the system's north, and by 12:00 UTC on September 16, it had developed into Tropical Depression Fifteen, as deep convection consolidated and developed into curved bands wrapping into an increasingly-defined center of circulation. At that time, it was located about east of Barbados. Favorable conditions along the system's path consisting of warm sea surface temperatures of , low wind shear, and abundant moisture aloft allowed the disturbance to consolidate and become Tropical Storm Maria 6 hours later, after satellite images had indicated that the low-level circulation of the wave had become well-defined.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Maria gradually strengthened, and by late on September 17, although the center had temporarily become exposed, a convective burst over the center enabled it to become a hurricane. Shortly afterward, explosive intensification occurred, with Maria nearly doubling its winds from 85 mph (140 km/h)—a Category 1 hurricane, to 165 mph (270 km/h)—a Category 5 hurricane, in just 24 hours, by which time it was located just 15 mi (25 km) east-southeast of Dominica late on September 18; the rate of intensification that occurred has been exceeded only a few times in the Atlantic since records began. Maria made landfall in Dominica at 01:15 UTC on September 19, becoming the first Category 5 hurricane on record to strike the island nation.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Entering the Caribbean Sea, Maria weakened slightly to a Category 4 hurricane due to land interaction with the island of Dominica, however it quickly restrengthened to a Category 5 hurricane and attained its peak intensity with winds of 175 mph (280 km/h) and a pressure of 908 mbar (hPa; 26.81 inHg) at 03:00 UTC on September 20 while southeast of Puerto Rico; this ranks it as the tenth-most intense Atlantic hurricane since reliable records began. An eyewall replacement cycle caused Maria weaken to Category 4 strength before it made landfall near Yabucoa, Puerto Rico at 10:15 UTC (6:15 am local time) that day with winds of 155 mph (250 km/h)—the most intense to strike on the island since the 1928 San Felipe Segundo hurricane. Maria weakened significantly while traversing Puerto Rico, but was able to restrengthen to a major hurricane once it emerged over the Atlantic later that afternoon, eventually attaining a secondary peak intensity with winds of 125 mph (205 km/h) on September 22, while north of Hispaniola.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Maria then began fluctuating in intensity for the next few days as the eye periodically appeared and disappeared, while slowly nearing the East Coast of the United States, although southwesterly wind shear gradually weakened the hurricane. By September 25, it passed over cooler sea surface temperatures that had been left behind by Hurricane Jose a week prior, causing its inner core to collapse and the structure of the storm to change significantly. On September 28, a trough that was beginning to emerge off the Northeastern United States swung Maria eastward out to sea, while also weakening to a tropical storm. Periodic bursts of convection near the center managed to maintain Maria's intensity as it accelerated east-northeast across the northern Atlantic Ocean, but interaction with an encroaching frontal zone ultimately resulted in the storm becoming an extratropical cyclone on September 30, which continued east-northeastward, before dissipating on October 2.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Upon the initiation of the National Hurricane Center (NHC)'s first advisories for the system that would become Tropical Storm Maria on the morning of September 16, the government of France issued tropical storm watches for the islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe, while St. Lucia issued a tropical storm watch for its citizens, and the government of Barbados issued a similar watch for Dominica. Barbados would later that day declare a tropical storm watch for its citizens and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The government of Antigua and Barbuda issued Hurricane watches for the islands of Antigua, Barbuda, St. Kitts, Nevis, and Montserrat by the time of the NHC's second advisory which declared Maria a tropical storm. The Dominican Republic activated the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters for humanitarian satellite coverage on the 20th.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Prior to both Hurricanes Irma and Maria, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), already struggling with increasing debt, had seen budget cuts imposed by PROMESA as well as the loss of 30 percent of its work force since 2012. With the median age of PREPA power plants at 44 years, an aging infrastructure across the island made the electric grid more susceptible to damage from storms. Inadequate safety mechanisms also plagued Puerto Rico's electric company, and local newspapers frequently reported on its poor maintenance and outdated control systems.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: According to the non-profit environmental advocacy group Natural Resources Defense Council, the island's water system was already in substandard conditions prior to hurricanes Irma and Maria. The NRDC reported that seventy percent of the island had water that did not meet the standards of the 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Still recovering from Hurricane Irma two weeks prior, approximately 80,000 remained without power as Maria approached. FEMA's Caribbean Distribution Center warehouse, its only emergency stockpile in the islands, is located on Puerto Rico. By September 15, 2017, 83% of the items there, including 90% of the water and all of the tarps and cots, had been deployed for post-Irma relief, mostly to the U.S. Virgin Islands. Maria arrived before supplies were replenished.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Evacuation orders were issued in Puerto Rico in advance of Maria, and officials announced that 450 shelters would open in the afternoon of September 18. By September 19, 2017, at least 2,000 people in Puerto Rico had sought shelter. Using anonymous aggregate cell phone tracking data provided by Google from users that opted to share location data, researchers reported that travel from Puerto Rico increased 20% the day before the hurricane made landfall. Puerto Rican travelers often chose to go to Orlando, Miami, New York City, and Atlanta. Internally, there was an influx of people into San Juan.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: As Maria approached the coast of North Carolina and threatened to bring tropical storm conditions, a storm surge warning was issued for the coast between Ocracoke Inlet and Cape Hatteras, while a storm surge watch was issued for the Pamlico Sound, the lower Neuse River, and the Alligator River on the morning of September 26. A state of emergency was declared by officials in Dare and Hyde counties, while visitors were ordered to evacuate Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. Ferry service between Ocracoke and Cedar Island was suspended the evening of September 25, and remained suspended on September 26 and 27, due to rough seas, while ferry service between Ocracoke and Hatteras Island was suspended on September 26 and 27. The port in Morehead City was closed by the United States Coast Guard on the morning of September 26. Schools in Dare County closed on September 26 and 27, while schools in Carteret and Tyrrell counties, along with Ocracoke Island, dismissed early on September 26, in anticipation of high winds. Schools in Currituck County were closed on September 27, due to high winds.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The outer rainbands of Maria produced heavy rainfall and strong gusts across the southern Windward Islands. The Hewanorra and George F. L. Charles airports of Saint Lucia respectively recorded 4.33 in (110 mm) and 3.1 in (80 mm) of rain, though even higher quantities fell elsewhere on the island. Scattered rock slides, landslides and uprooted trees caused minor damage and blocked some roads. Several districts experienced localized blackouts due to downed or damaged power lines. The agricultural sector, especially the banana industry, suffered losses from the winds.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Heavy rainfall amounting to 3–5 in (75–125 mm) caused scattered flooding across Barbados; in Christ Church, the flood waters trapped residents from the neighborhood of Goodland in their homes and inundated the business streets of Saint Lawrence Gap. Maria stirred up rough seas that flooded coastal sidewalks in Bridgetown and damaged boats as operators had difficulties securing their vessels. High winds triggered an island-wide power outage and downed a coconut tree onto a residence in Saint Joseph.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Passing 30 mi (50 km) off the northern shorelines, Maria brought torrential rainfall and strong gusts to Martinique but spared the island of its hurricane-force windfield, which at the time extended 25 mi (35 km) around the eye. The commune of Le Marigot recorded 6.7 inches (170 mm) of rain over a 24-hour period. By September 19, Maria had knocked out power to 70,000 households, about 40% of the population. Water service was cut to 50,000 customers, especially in the communes of Le Morne-Rouge and Gros-Morne. Numerous roads and streets, especially along the northern coast, were impassible due to rock slides, fallen trees and toppled power poles. Streets in Fort-de-France were inundated. In the seaside commune of Le Carbet, rough seas washed ashore large rocks and demolished some coastal structures, while some boats were blown over along the bay of the commune of Schœlcher. Martinique's agricultural sector suffered considerable losses: about 70% of banana crops sustained wind damage, with nearly every tree downed along the northern coast. There were no deaths on the island, although four people were injured in the hurricane—two seriously and two lightly. Agricultural loss were estimated at €35 million (US$42 million).


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Rainfall ahead of the hurricane caused several landslides in Dominica, as water levels across the island began to rise by the afternoon of September 18. Maria made landfall at 21:15 AST that day (1:15 UTC, September 19) as a Category 5 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 165 mph (270 km/h). These winds, the most extreme to ever impact the island, damaged the roof of practically every home—including the official residence of Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, who required rescue when his home began to flood. Downing all cellular, radio and internet services, Maria effectively cut Dominica off from the outside world; the situation there remained unclear for a couple of days after the hurricane's passage. Skerrit called the devastation "mind boggling" before going offline, and indicated immediate priority was to rescue survivors rather than assess damage. Initial ham radio reports from the capital of Roseau on September 19 indicated "total devastation," with half the city flooded, cars stranded, and stretches of residential area "flattened".


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The next morning, the first aerial footage of Dominica elucidated the scope of the destruction. Maria left the mountainous country blanketed in a field of debris: Rows of houses along the entirety of the coastline were rendered uninhabitable, as widespread floods and landslides littered neighborhoods with the structural remnants. The hurricane also inflicted extensive damage to roads and public buildings, such as schools, stores and churches, and affected all of Dominica's 73,000 residents in some form or way. The air control towers and terminal buildings of the Canefield and Douglas Charles airports were severely damaged, although the runways remained relatively intact and open to emergency landings. The disaster affected all of the island's 53 health facilities, including the badly damaged primary hospital, compromising the safety of many patients.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The infrastructure of Roseau was left in ruins; practically every power pole and line was downed, and the main road was reduced to fragments of flooded asphalt. The winds stripped the public library of its roof panels and demolished all but one wall of the Baptist church. To the south of Roseau, riverside flooding and numerous landslides impacted the town of Pointe Michel, destroying about 80% of its structures and causing most of the deaths in the country. Outside the capital area, the worst of the destruction was concentrated around the east coast and rural areas, where collapsed roads and bridges isolated many villages. The port and fishing town of Marigot, Saint Andrew Parish, was 80% damaged. Settlements in Saint David Parish, such as Castle Bruce, Good Hope and Grand Fond, had been practically eradicated; many homes hung off cliffs or decoupled from their foundations. In Rosalie, rushing waters gushed over the village's bridge and damaged facilities in its bay area. Throughout Saint Patrick Parish, the extreme winds ripped through roofs and scorched the vegetation. Buildings in Grand Bay, the parish's main settlement, experienced total roof failure or were otherwise structurally compromised. Many houses in La Plaine caved in or slid into rivers, and its single bridge was broken.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Overall, the hurricane damaged the roofs of as much as 98% of the island's buildings, including those serving as shelters; half of the houses had their frames destroyed. Its ferocious winds defoliated nearly all vegetation, splintering or uprooting thousands of trees and decimating the island's lush rainforests. The agricultural sector, a vital source of income for the country, was completely wiped out: 100% of banana and tuber plantations was lost, as well as vast amounts of livestock and farm equipment. In Maria's wake, Dominica's population suffered from an island-wide water shortage due to uprooted pipes. The Assessment Capacities Project estimates that the hurricane has caused EC$3.69 billion (US$1.37 billion) in losses across the island, which is equal to 226 percent of its 2016 GDP. As of April 12, 2019, a total of 65 fatalities have been confirmed across the island, including 34 who are missing and presumed to be dead.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Post-hurricane relief aid that was brought to Dominica from regional partners and aiding countries additionally brought several non-native species that became established and which local stakeholders are still trying to remove in 2022.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Blustery conditions spread over Guadeloupe as Maria tracked to the south of the archipelago, which endured hours of unabating hurricane-force winds. The strongest winds blew along the southern coastlines of Basse-Terre Island: Gourbeyre observed a peak wind speed of 101 mph (162 km/h), while winds up north in nearby Baillif reached 92 mph (148 km/h). Along those regions, the hurricane kicked up extremely rough seas with 20 ft (6 m) waves. The combination of rough seas and winds was responsible for widespread structural damage and flooding throughout the archipelago, especially from Pointe-à-Pitre, along Grand-Terre Island's southwestern coast, to Petit-Bourg and the southern coasts on Basse-Terre Island. Aside from wind-related effects, rainfall from Maria was also significant. In just a day, the hurricane dropped nearly a month's worth of rainfall at some important locations: Pointe-à-Pitre recorded a 24-hour total of 7.5 inches (191 mm), while the capital of Basse-Terre measured 6.4 in (163 mm). Even greater quantities fell at higher elevations of Basse Terre Island, with a maximum total of 18.07 in (459 mm) measured at the mountainous locality of Matouba, Saint-Claude.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Throughout the archipelago, the hurricane left 40% of the population (80,000 households) without power and 25% of landline users without service. The islands of Marie-Galante, La Désirade and especially Les Saintes bore the brunt of the winds, which caused heavy damage to structures and nature alike and cut the islands off from their surroundings for several days. Homes on Terre-de-Haut Island of Les Saintes were flooded or lost their roofs. On the mainland, sections of Pointe-à-Pitre stood under more than 3.3 feet (1 m) of water, and the city's hospital sustained significant damage. The Basse-Terre region suffered severe damage to nearly 100% of its banana crops, comprising a total area of more than 5,000 acres (2,000 hectares); farmers described the destruction to their plantations as "complete annihilation". Beyond their impact on farmland, the strong winds ravaged much of the island's vegetation: fallen trees and branches covered practically every major road and were responsible for one death. Another person was killed upon being swept out to sea. Two people disappeared at sea after their vessel capsized offshore La Désirade, east of mainland Grande-Terre, and they are presumed to be dead afterwards. Damage from Maria across Guadeloupe amounted to at least €100 million (US$120 million).


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Two weeks after Hurricane Irma hit St. Thomas and St. John as a Category 5 hurricane, Hurricane Maria's weaker outer eyewall was reported by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) to have crossed Saint Croix, while the hurricane was at Category 5 intensity. Sustained winds at the Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge on St. Croix reached and gusted to . Damage was most extensive in the town of Frederiksted, on the west end of St. Croix, as well as along the southern shoreline, leaving 3 people dead. Weather stations on St. Croix recorded between of rain from the hurricane, and estimates for St. John and St. Thomas were somewhat less.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The hurricane killed two people, both in their homes: one person drowned and another was trapped by a mudslide. A third person had a fatal heart attack during the hurricane. The hurricane caused severe damage to St. Croix. It took almost a year for power to be restored to most residents. U.S. President Donald Trump declared a major disaster in the U.S. Virgin Islands one day after Maria hit. The move freed up federal funding for people on the island of St. Croix. After both hurricanes, the office of V.I. congresswoman Stacey Plaskett stated that 90% of buildings in the Virgin Islands were damaged or destroyed and 13,000 of those buildings had lost their roofs. The Governor Juan F. Luis Hospital & Medical Center on St. Croix suffered roof damage and flooding, but remained operational.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The storm made landfall on Puerto Rico on Wednesday, September 20, near the Yabucoa municipality at 10:15 UTC (6:15 a.m. local time) as a high-end Category 4 hurricane with winds of 155 mph (250 km/h). A sustained wind of with a gust to was reported in San Juan, immediately prior to the hurricane making landfall on the island. After landfall, wind gusts of were reported at Yabucoa Harbor and at Camp Santiago. A minimum barometric pressure reading of 926.6 mbar (27.36 inHg) was reported in Yabucoa. In addition, heavy rainfall occurred throughout the territory, peaking at 37.9 inches (962.7 mm) in Caguas. The eyewall replacement cycle that caused María to weaken to Category 4 strength also caused the eye to triple in size as the diameter expanded prior to landfall. This change in size caused the area exposed to high-intensity winds on the island to be far greater. Widespread flooding affected San Juan, waist-deep in some areas, and numerous structures lost their roof. The coastal La Perla neighborhood of San Juan was largely destroyed. Cataño saw extensive damage, with the Juana Matos neighborhood estimated to be 80-percent destroyed. The primary airport in San Juan, the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, was slated to reopen on September 22.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Extensive damage occurred to hundreds of thousands of buildings throughout Puerto Rico due to high winds, heavy rainfall, storm surge, wave action and landslides. Ricardo Rosselló estimated that over 300,000 homes had been destroyed and many more damaged across the commonwealth. Other estimates included 166,000 residential buildings damaged or destroyed and 472,000 housing units having received major damage or having been destroyed.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Storm surge and flash flooding—stemming from flood gate releases at La Plata Lake Dam—converged on the town of Toa Baja, trapping thousands of residents. Survivors indicate that flood waters rose at least in 30 minutes, with flood waters reaching a depth of in some areas. More than 2,000 people were rescued once military relief reached the town 24 hours after the storm. At least eight people died from the flooding, while many were unaccounted for.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On September 24, Puerto Rico's Governor Ricardo Rosselló estimated that the damage from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico was probably over the $8 billion damage figure from Hurricane Georges. Approximately 80 percent of the territory's agriculture was lost due to the hurricane, with agricultural losses estimated at $780 million.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The hurricane completely destroyed the island's power grid, leaving all 3.4 million residents without electricity. Governor Rosselló stated that it could take months to restore power in some locations, with San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz estimating that some areas would remain without power for four to six months. Communication networks were crippled across the island. Ninety-five percent of cell networks were down, with 48 of the island's 78 counties networks being completely inoperable. Eighty-five percent of above-ground phone and internet cables were knocked out. Only twelve radio stations, namely WAPA 680 AM, WPAB 550 AM & WISO 1260 AM of Ponce, WKJB 710 AM, WPRA 990 AM & WTIL 1300 AM of Mayaguez, WMIA 1070 AM of Arecibo, WVOZ 1580 AM of Morovis, WXRF 1590 AM of Guayama, WALO 1240 AM of Humacao and WOIZ 1130 AM of Guayanilla, remained on the air during the storm.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Hurricane Maria caused landslides across the island and in some municipalities there were more than 25 landslides per square mile.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The NEXRAD Doppler weather radar of Puerto Rico was blown away. The radome which covers the radar antenna, and which was designed to withstand winds of more than 130 mph, was destroyed while the antenna of 30 feet in diameter was blown from the pedestal, the latter remaining intact. The radar is above sea level, and the anemometer at the site measured winds of about before communications broke, which means winds at that height were likely 20 percent higher than what was seen at sea level. The radar was rebuilt and finally brought back online 9 months later.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The nearby island of Vieques suffered similarly extensive damage. Communications were largely lost across the island. Widespread property destruction took place with many structures leveled. The remaining structures on the island of Culebra were extremely vulnerable to Maria's powerful winds after having recently experienced major damage due to Hurricane Irma, causing the complete destruction of many wooden houses, along with blown off roofs and sunken boats.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The former survey ship "Ferrel", carrying a family of four, issued a distress signal while battling and on September 20. Communications with the vessel were lost near Vieques on September 20. The United States Coast Guard, United States Navy, and British Royal Navy conducted search-and-rescue operations using an HC-130 aircraft, a fast response cutter, , and Navy helicopters. On September 21, the mother and her two children were rescued while the father drowned inside the capsized vessel.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Maria's Category 4 winds broke a line feed antenna of the Arecibo Observatory, causing it to fall and puncturing the dish below, greatly reducing its ability to function until repairs could be made.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Hurricane Maria greatly affected Puerto Rico's agriculture. Coffee was the worst affected crop, with 18 million coffee trees destroyed, which will require about five to ten years to bring back at least 15% of the coffee production of the island.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The Whitney Museum of American Art documented Hurricane Maria experiences in Puerto Rico and its aftermath in an art exhibition November 23, 2022 - April 23, 2023: "no existe un mundo poshuracán: Puerto Rican Art in the Wake of Hurricane Maria."


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Torrential rains and strong winds impacted the Dominican Republic as Maria tracked northeast of the country. Assessments on September 22 indicated that 110 homes were destroyed, 570 were damaged, and 3,723 were affected by flooding. Approximately 60,000 people lost power in northern areas of the country. Flooding and landslides rendered many roads impassable, cutting off 38 communities. Five people, all of them males, were killed in the Dominican Republic: four of them were of Haitian origin, killed when they were swept away by floodwaters; the fifth person was a Dominican man who died in a landslide. Infrastructural damage amounted to RD$3 billion (US$63 million).


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Hurricane Maria's center passed from Haiti's northern coast, but triggered a large amount of rain and some flooding in Haiti. Three deaths were reported: a 45-year-old man died in the commune of Limbe, in the department of the North, while attempting to cross a flooded river. Two other people, a woman and a man, died in Cornillon, a small town east of the capital Port-au-Prince, according to the authorities.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Maria brushed the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 26, as the center of the storm passed by offshore and brought tropical storm conditions to the area, along with a storm surge, large waves, and rip currents to the coast. The storm knocked out power to 800 Duke Energy Progress customers in the Havelock area, with restoration of power expected to take several hours. Dominion North Carolina Power and Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative experienced scattered power outages. Winds of and gusts of were reported at Dare County Regional Airport at Manteo on September 27, while winds of were reported in Duck, North Carolina. Maria caused beach erosion at the ferry terminal at the north end of Ocracoke Island that washed out a portion of the paved lanes where vehicles wait to board the ferry. By the morning of September 26, the storm flooded North Carolina Highway 12 along the coast. Rip currents from Maria caused three swimmers to drown and several others to be rescued at the Jersey Shore on the weekend of September 23–24. A fourth drowning death occurred in Fernandina Beach, Florida.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: In the wake of the hurricane, more than 85% of the island's houses were damaged, of which more than 25% were completely destroyed, leaving more than 50,000 of the island's 73,000 residents to be displaced. Following the destruction of thousands of homes, most supermarkets and the water supply system, many of Dominica's residents were in dire need of food, water and shelter for days. With no access to electricity or running water, and with sewage systems destroyed, fears of widespread diarrhea and dysentery arose. The island's agriculture, a vital source of income for many, was obliterated as most trees were flattened. Meanwhile, the driving force of the economy—tourism—was expected to be scarce in the months that followed Maria. Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit characterized the devastation wrought by Irma and Maria as a sign of climate change and the threat it poses to the survival of his country, stating, "To deny climate change ... is to deny a truth we have just lived." Many islanders suffered respiratory problems as a result of excessive dust borne out of the debris. Light rainfall in the weeks following Maria alleviated this problem, although it also slowed recovery efforts, particularly rebuilding damaged rooftops.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Through the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility, Dominica received approximately US$19.2 million in emergency funds. , previously deployed to Saint Martin to assist in relief efforts after Hurricane Irma, arrived in Dominica on September 22. The vessel carried two Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk helicopters to assist in distribution of relief supplies in hard-to-reach areas. At the United Nations General Assembly on September 23, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit called the situation in Dominica an "international humanitarian emergency". The Royal Canadian Navy vessel was dispatched to Dominica at the request of Dominican Prime Minister Skerrit.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The prime minister urged churches to encourage their membership to provide housing for senior citizens and disabled, many of whom remained in damaged structures despite tarpaulin donations from Venezuela, Israel, Cuba, Jamaica, and other countries. As schools began to reopen on October 16, the United Nations Children's Fund reported that the entire child population of Dominica—23,000 children—remained vulnerable due to restricted access to clean drinking water. Efforts to rebuild homes and buildings across the island were steady, albeit slowed due to lack of funds. Almost two years after Maria, shelters remained operational as many homes still lacked significant roofing.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The power grid was effectively destroyed by the hurricane, leaving millions without electricity. Governor Ricardo Rosselló estimated that Maria caused at least US$ 90 billion in damage and in 2018 the US National Hurricane Center updated its list of costliest hurricanes to include that figure.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On September 26, 2017, 95% of the island was without power, less than half the population had tap water, and 95% of the island had no cell phone service. On October 6, a little more than two weeks after the hurricane, 89% still had no power, 44% had no water service, and 58% had no cell service.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Two weeks after the hurricane, international relief organization Oxfam chose to intervene for the first time on American soil since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: One month after the hurricane, 88% of the island was without power (about 3 million people), 29% lacked tap water (about 1 million people), and 40% of the island had no cell service. A month after the hurricane, most hospitals were open, but most were on backup generators that provide limited power. Angelique Sina's non-profit organization, Friends of Puerto Rico, had supplied generators for hospitals in two cities, by November 2017. About half of sewage treatment plants on the island were still not functioning. FEMA reported 60,000 homes needed roofing help, and had distributed 38,000 roofing tarps. The island's highways and bridges remained heavily damaged nearly a month later. Only 392 miles of Puerto Rico's 5,073 miles of road were open. Some towns continued to be isolated and delivery of relief supplies including food and water were hampered—helicopters were the only alternative.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: By October 1, 2017, there were ongoing fuel shortage and distribution problems, with 720 of 1,100 gas stations open.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The Guajataca Dam was structurally damaged, and on September 22, the National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency for parts of the area in response. Tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate the area, with about 70,000 thought to be at risk.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The entirety of Puerto Rico was declared a Federal Disaster Zone shortly after the hurricane. The Federal Emergency Management Agency planned to open an air bridge with three to four aircraft carrying essential supplies to the island daily starting on September 22. Beyond flights involving the relief effort, limited commercial traffic resumed at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport on September 22 under primitive conditions. A dozen commercial flights operated daily, as of September 26, 2017. By October 3, there were 39 commercial flights per day from all Puerto Rican airports, about a quarter of the normal number. The next day, airports were reported to be operating at normal capacity. The territory's government contracted 56 small companies to assist in restoring power. Eight FEMA Urban Search & Rescue (US&R) teams were deployed to assist in rescue efforts.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On September 24, the amphibious assault ship and the dock landing ship under Rear Admiral Jeffrey W. Hughes along with the 2,400 marines of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived to assist in relief efforts. By September 24, there were thirteen United States Coast Guard ships deployed around Puerto Rico assisting in the relief and restoration efforts: the National Security Cutter ; the medium endurance cutters , , , and ; the fast response cutters , , , , and ; the coastal patrol boat USCGC "Yellowfin"; and the seagoing buoy tenders and . Federal aid arrived on September 25 with the reopening of major ports. Eleven cargo vessels collectively carrying 1.3 million liters of water, 23,000 cots, and dozens of generators arrived. Full operations at the ports of Guayanilla, Salinas, and Tallaboa resumed on September 25, while the ports of San Juan, Fajardo, Culebra, Guayama, and Vieques had limited operations. The United States Air Force Air Mobility Command has dedicated eight C-17 Globemaster aircraft to deliver relief supplies. The Air Force assisted the Federal Aviation Administration with air traffic control repairs to increase throughput capacity. The logistics support ship "SS Wright (T-AVB-3)" was mobilized on September 22 to support relief operations delivering 1.3 million MREs and one million liters of fresh water.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: The United States Transportation Command moved additional personnel and eight U.S. Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from Fort Campbell, Kentucky to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport to increase distribution capacity. The United States Army Corps of Engineers deployed 670 personnel engaged in assessing and restoring the power grid; by September 25, 83 generators were installed and an additional 186 generators were en route. By September 26, 2017, agencies of the U.S. government had delivered four million meals, six million liters of water, 70,000 tarps and 15,000 rolls of roof sheeting. National Guard troops were activated and deployed to Puerto Rico from Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, New York, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On September 29, the hospital ship left port at Norfolk, Virginia to help victims of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, and arrived in San Juan on October 3. A couple of days later, "Comfort" departed on an around the island tour to assist, remaining a dozen miles off shore. Patients were brought to the ship by helicopter or boat tender after being referred by Puerto Rico's Department of Health. However, most of the 250 bed floating state-of-the-art hospital went unused despite overburdened island clinics and hospitals because there were few referrals. Governor Rosselló explained on or about October 17 that "The disconnect or the apparent disconnect was in the communications flow" and added "I asked for a complete revision of that so that we can now start sending more patients over there." After remaining offshore for three weeks, the "Comfort" docked in San Juan on October 27, briefly departing only once to restock at sea from a naval resupply ship. By November 8, 2017, "Comfort"s staff had treated 1,476 patients, including 147 surgeries and two births.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On September 27, the Pentagon reopened two major airfields on Puerto Rico and started sending aircraft, specialized units, and a hospital ship to assist in the relief effort; Brigadier General Richard C. Kim, the deputy commanding general of United States Army North, was responsible for coordinating operations between the military, FEMA and other government agencies, and the private sector. Massive amounts of water, food, and fuel either had been delivered to ports in Puerto Rico or were held up at ports in the mainland United States because there was a lack of truck drivers to move the goods into the interior; the lack of communication networks hindered the effort as only 20% of drivers reported to work. By September 28, the Port of San Juan had been able to dispatch only 4% of deliveries received and had very little room to accept additional shipments. By September 28, 44 percent of the population remained without drinking water and the U.S. military was shifting from "a short term, sea-based response to a predominantly land-based effort designed to provide robust, longer term support" with fuel delivery a top priority. A joint Army National Guard and Marine expeditionary unit (MEU) team established an Installation Staging Base at the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Station; they transported via helicopter Department of Health and Human Services assessment teams to hospitals across Puerto Rico to determine medical requirements. On September 29, the amphibious assault ship which had been providing relief activities to the island of Dominica was diverted to Puerto Rico. By September 30, FEMA official Alejandro de la Campa stated that 5% of electricity, 33% of the telecommunications infrastructure, and 50% of water services had been restored to the island.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On September 28, 2017, Lieutenant General Jeffrey S. Buchanan was dispatched to Puerto Rico to lead all military hurricane relief efforts there and to see how the military could be more effective in the recovery effort, particularly in dealing with the thousands of containers of supplies that were stuck in port because of "red tape, lack of drivers, and a crippling power outage". On September 29 he stated that there were not enough troops and equipment in place but more would be arriving soon.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: With centralized fossil-fuel-based power plants and grid infrastructure expected to be out of commission for weeks to months, some renewable energy projects were in the works, including the shipment of hundreds of Tesla Powerwall battery systems to be integrated with solar PV systems and Sonnen solar microgrid projects at 15 emergency community centers; the first were expected to be completed in October. In addition, other solar companies jumped into help, including Sunnova and New Start Solar. A charity called Light Up Puerto Rico raised money to both purchase and deliver solar products, including solar panels, on Oct. 19. The idea would be to supplement the existing electrical grid with power from solar and wind farms. A complete replacement of fossil fuel infrastructure is unlikely as solar and wind are too intermittent and are also vulnerable to another hurricane. Four of the five large solar farms on Puerto Rico were damaged and many of the wind turbines suffered damaged blades.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: Many TV and movie stars donated money to hurricane relief organizations to help the victims of Harvey and Maria. Prominently, Jennifer Aniston pledged a million U.S. dollars, dividing the amount equally between the Red Cross and the Ricky Martin Foundation for Puerto Rico. Martin's foundation had raised over three million dollars by October 13, 2017.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On October 9, 2017, the United States Postal Service stated that 99 of its 128 offices were delivering packages and mail to residents, albeit some were working out of tents and their offices had no power for one week after the hurricane. Care packages were coming in to Puerto Rico from all over and USPS hired temporary workers and had workers delivering packages 7 days a week, to help with the brunt.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On October 10, 2017, Carnival Cruise Lines announced that it would resume departures of cruises from San Juan on October 15, 2017. On October 13, both CNN and The Guardian reported that Puerto Ricans were drinking water that was being pumped from a well at an EPA Superfund site; the water was later determined to be safe to drink.


title: Hurricane Maria

text: On October 13, the Trump administration requested $4.9 billion to fund a loan program that Puerto Rico could use to address basic functions and infrastructure needs. On October 20, only 18.5% of the island had electricity, 49.1% of cell towers were working, and 69.5% of customers had running water, with the slowest restoration in the north. Ports and commercial flights were back to normal operations, but 7.6% of USPS locations, 11.5% of supermarkets, and 21.4% of gas stations were still closed. 4,246 people were still living in emergency shelters, and tourism was down by half. On November 5, more than 100,000 people had left Puerto Rico for the mainland. A December 17 report indicated that 600 people remained in shelters while 130,000 had left the island to go to the mainland.