Río Abajo, Utuado, Puerto Rico facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Río Abajo
Barrio
View of Río Abajo from bordering Río Arriba in Arecibo
Location of Río Abajo within the municipality of Utuado shown in red
Río Abajo, Utuado, Puerto Rico Location in Caribbean
Commonwealth	Puerto Rico
Municipality	Utuado
Area
• Total	2.31 sq mi (6.0 km2)
• Land	2.30 sq mi (6.0 km2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2)
Elevation	1,070 ft (330 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	237
• Density	103/sq mi (40/km2)
	Source: 2010 Census
Time zone	UTC−4 (AST)

Río Abajo is a small area, called a barrio, located in the town of Utuado, Puerto Rico. In 2010, about 237 people lived there. It's a quiet, countryside area found in the Cordillera Central (Puerto Rico), which is a big mountain range crossing the middle of Puerto Rico from east to west.

History of Río Abajo

Puerto Rico used to belong to Spain. After the Spanish–American War, in 1898, it became a territory of the United States. In 1899, the U.S. government counted the people living in Puerto Rico. They found that 1,235 people lived in Río Abajo at that time.

Hurricane Maria's Impact

On September 20, 2017, a very strong storm called Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. This hurricane caused a lot of damage in Río Abajo. The storm washed away the main bridge, leaving about 60 families completely cut off from others.

To get food and supplies, the people of Río Abajo came up with a clever idea. They created a temporary zip line to send things across the river! This helped them until a new, temporary bridge could be built. A permanent bridge was finally finished in March 2018, connecting the community once again.

See Also

• List of communities in Puerto Rico

In Spanish: Río Abajo (Utuado) para niños