New Year's Eve is spent in darkness for most of Puerto Rico due to a power outage.

Nearly 1.3 million clients in Puerto Rico were left in the dark on Tuesday as the U.S. territory began preparations for New Year's Eve, and officials estimate that it may take up to two days to restore power following a blackout.

At dawn, the entire island was plunged into silence as electrical appliances and air conditioners were shut off, leaving only those who could afford generators to turn them on.

Nearly 90% of 1.47 million clients in Puerto Rico were left without electricity, according to Luma Energy, a private company responsible for transmission and distribution.

The company stated that the power outage was due to a fault in an underground power line and is currently working to restore power as quickly and safely as possible.

The anger against Luma and Genera PR, the company responsible for generating power in Puerto Rico, was further intensified by the blackout.

The governor-elect, Jenniffer González Colón, has called for the appointment of an "energy czar" to review potential Luma contractual breaches while another operator is sought.

"Stabilizing Puerto Rico's energy grid is my top priority in office," she wrote on X, stating that we cannot continue to depend on an energy system that fails our people.

Current Gov. Pedro Pierluisi stated in a post on X that he had contact with Luma and Genera PR.

"The San Juan and Palo Seco plants are already undergoing work to restore service, and we are demanding answers and solutions from LUMA and Genera to expedite the restart of the generating units outside the fault area and keep the people informed about the measures being taken to restore service throughout the Island."

Some businesses, parks, and malls were forced to close due to the outage, while the government limited the schedules of some of its agencies.

On Tuesday, Puerto Rico experienced power outages, and the White House released a statement about the situation.

"Liz Sherwood-Randall, the Homeland Security Advisor, informed the President about the widespread power outages in Puerto Rico. Jennifer Granholm, the Secretary of Energy, spoke with the Governor of Puerto Rico and, at the President's direction, offered federal assistance to speed up power restoration."

Despite being infrequent, Puerto Rico experiences persistent power outages due to a deteriorating power grid that was severely harmed by Hurricane Maria, a Category 4 hurricane that hit the island in September 2017.

Despite years of neglect in terms of maintenance and investment, the system had already begun to decline at that time.

Recently, permanent repairs have been made to Puerto Rico's power grid by crews, although the island continues to rely on generators from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to maintain stability.

The Puerto Rican government requested permission from U.S. officials to use over a dozen portable generators for an additional two years.

The Electric Power Authority of Puerto Rico faces challenges in restructuring over $9 billion in debt, which is the largest government agency on the island.

On Puerto Rico, over 60% of energy comes from power plants that use petroleum, while natural gas and coal follow. Solar rooftops contribute just about 7% to the electricity consumption on the island, which has a poverty rate exceeding 40%.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.