At the end of the 1940s, the
Puerto Rico Aqueducts and Sewers Authority (PRASA) proposed the construction of a dam at the
Río Grande de Loíza in the Barrio
Carraízo of
Trujillo Alto with the intention of providing both water and electricity to the
San Juan Metropolitan Area. Construction of the dam began in 1950 and finished in 1954. As part of the construction, the dam included three
hydroelectric turbines with a total capacity of 3
Megawatts for the provision of electricity. However, during the 1960s and 1970s, the turbines were shut down because their operation and maintenance wasn't considered cost-effective versus the cost of buying energy at the time. In 1989
Hurricane Hugo caused overtopping of the dam, thereby flooding the hydroelectric facility and rendering it inoperable. It stayed closed until 2013, when PRASA elected to renovate the facility. In 2017
Hurricane Maria caused overtopping and flooding to nearby areas. ==Operation==