Manuela Santiago Collazo

Who is Manuela Santiago Collazo?

Manuela Santiago Collazo was a Puerto Rican politician who was the mayor of the city of Vieques.

Santiago Collazo became Vieques' first female mayor during the 1984 general elections. She remained in that position until 2001.

A popular politician among Vieques residents and among many mainland Puerto Rico residents as well, Santiago Collazo met with various difficult moments during her tenure as mayor: In 1989, Vieques was one of the most severely affected Puerto Rican cities after the passing of hurricane Hugo. Large amounts of money were required to return the town to normality, as the island-city's boat service to Fajardo had to be temporarily stopped, the local airline, Vieques Air Link, suffered temporary loss of some of their aircraft, and the city lost electricity and water services. The city was later also affected by other hurricanes and storms.

In 1995, many important political figures wrote a letter to United States president Bill Clinton, asking for an investigation into an incident where an atomic bomb hit Vieques supposedly by accident in 1966. Santiago Collazo signed the letter.