(Bloomberg) -- Two weeks ago, Puerto Rico was spared adevastating hit when Hurricane Irma ripped up the Caribbean. Thistime, it may not be so lucky.

Bankrupt island

The bankrupt island, already contending with the aftermath of astorm that left as much as $1 billion of damage and hundreds ofthousands still without power, faces even more upheaval withHurricane Maria set to hit as soon as Tuesday night.

The government ordered rationing of basic necessities, includingwater and batteries, although those items were already gone fromsome San Juan store shelves as residents prepared for what could bethe worst storm for the U.S. territory in decades.

'There has never been an event like this in our history'

“If you are in a flood zone or in a wood house, your life is indanger,” Governor Ricardo Rossello said during a pressconference Monday in San Juan. “There has never been an event likethis in our history in the last 100 years. Our call is for allcitizens to move to a safe place.”

Puerto Rico is facing an active hurricane season with littlefinancial ability to navigate a natural catastrophe. It filed forbankruptcy in May after years of economic decline and borrowing tofill budget gaps. A series of defaults have effectively left itunable to raise money in the capital markets. And its aginggovernment-owned electric utility, the Electric Power Authority, isalso operating under court protection from creditors.

Puerto Rico’s emergency fund stood at about $32 million beforeIrma passed through.

No sustainable electric infrastructure

Prepa, the government-run utility, is still trying to restore powerto hundreds of thousands of residents after its electricalinfrastructure sustained as much as $400 million of the nearly $1billion of damage from Irma. It was already in need of upgradesbecause it relies on oil to produce most of its electricity and themedian plant age is 44 years, more than twice the industryaverage.

“We will not have sustainable electric infrastructure in thenear future,” Rossello said. “We will be bringing in crews fromoutside of Puerto Rico to attend to these measures.”

Cat 5 storm with 160 mph winds

Hurricane Maria became a Category 5 storm late Monday with maximumwinds of 160 miles per hour, according to the National Hurricane Center. The island is anticipating10 to 18 inches of rain, with as much as 25 inches in certainareas.

Puerto Rico’s Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juanis set to close Tuesday at 7 p.m. The island’s Convention Center inSan Juan, the largest in the Caribbean, is sheltering people whoare bedridden or have special needs.

Nearly 500 shelters

Rossello’s administration has opened nearly 500 shelters throughoutthe island and may set up more. Water, batteries, baby foodand generators were already scarce in San Juan by Monday eveningand motorists waited at least half an hour in line to buy gasoline.Officials estimate the last time the island withstood such apowerful storm was in 1928 with Hurricane San Felipe.

Related: Hurricane preparation step-by-step: What to do as astorm approaches

Maria’s threat hasn’t rattled the bond market, given that PuertoRico has already defaulted and is seeking to have some of its debtsdischarged in bankruptcy. While its securities were actively tradedas the storm gathered force, Puerto Rico debt maturing in 2035changed hands Tuesday at an average price of 57.5 cents on thedollar, in line with where they’ve traded over the past couple ofweeks.

Mostly insured by local firms

The island is mostly insured by local firms, though has beenseeking more international interest, according to a reportpublished last year by the commonwealth’s commissioner ofinsurance’s office. Universal Insurance Group of Puerto Rico is theNo. 1 provider of home coverage on the island, with almost 62%market share, according to data compiled by ratings firm A.M.Best.

MAPFRE NorthAmerica Group, ranked second with 22.5% of the market, is aunit of Spanish insurer Mapfre SA.

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