In Battered Puerto Rico, Governor Warns of a Humanitarian Crisis

[Bob The Knob]

[t]https://static01.nyt.com/images/2017/09/26/us/26PUERTO/26PUERTO-superJumbo.jpg[/t]

[url]https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/25/us/puerto-rico-maria-fema-disaster-.html[/url]
[quote]Gov. Ricardo A. Rosselló of Puerto Rico said on Monday that the island was on the brink of a “humanitarian crisis” nearly a week after Hurricane Maria knocked out its power and most of its water, and left residents waiting in excruciating lines for fuel. He called on Congress to prevent a deepening disaster.

Stressing that Puerto Rico, a United States territory, deserved the same treatment as hurricane-ravaged states, the governor urged Republican leaders and the federal government to move swiftly to send more money, supplies and relief workers. It was a plea echoed by Puerto Rico’s allies in Congress, who are pushing for quick movement on a new relief bill and a loosening of financial debt obligations for the island, which is still reeling from a corrosive economic crisis.

“Puerto Rico, which is part of the United States, can turn into a humanitarian crisis,” Governor Rosselló said. “To avoid that, recognize that we Puerto Ricans are American citizens; when we speak of a catastrophe, everyone must be treated equally.”

And Mr. Rosselló did not mince words about the potential impact on the mainland, where Puerto Ricans are expected to arrive in droves to escape the post-Maria hardships they will face on the island, including a shortage of already hard-to-find jobs.

“If we want to prevent, for example, a mass exodus, we have to take action. Congress, take note: Take action, permit Puerto Rico to have the necessary resources,” Mr. Rosselló said.[/quote]

Trump responds

[media]https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/912478274508423168[/media]
[media]https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/912479500511965184[/media]
[media]https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/912481556127780865[/media]

[Kigen]

The biggest problem is getting stuff to the island. It'll have to be by plane (can't carry as much, but faster) or boat (can carry a lot more supplies but slower). The comparisons with Texas or Florida are off since those states are apart of the mainland and its vastly easier to get supplies to them.

I'd imagine we have US Navy ships already trying to get more supplies to them. But part of this will simply be trying to relocate as many people off the island to ease the burdens there. The problem being that a lot of those people probably don't have to means to pay for relocation themselves to start off with. Since a lot of the assistance programs are designed to reimburse someone after they've paid themselves for relocating.

FEMA has been trying to get as many as possible to use this website. But given the infrastructure damage that may not be possible for a lot of people in Puerto Rico.

[url]https://disasterassistance.gov[/url]

[Cpn Crunch21]

How about Trump or Congress waive the Jones Act to allow ships to go directly to PR instead of this ass backwards 'bring your ship to maimi to then go to PR'. Everyone is trying to send resources to the island but are bottlenecked by the port situation.

This article explains how fucked it is

[url]https://qz.com/1087325/what-is-the-jones-act-and-how-is-it-affecting-puerto-ricos-hurricane-recovery/[/url]

From the wiki [url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merchant_Marine_Act_of_1920[/url]

[quote=Wiki]"Effects[edit]
The Jones Act prevents foreign-flagged ships from carrying cargo between the US mainland and noncontiguous parts of the US, such as Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Alaska, and Guam.[11] Foreign ships inbound with goods cannot stop any of these four locations, offload goods, load mainland-bound goods, and continue to US mainland ports. Although ships can offload cargo and proceed to the US mainland without picking up any additional cargo intended for delivery to the another US place. Usually, they proceed directly to US mainland ports, where distributors break bulk and then send goods to US places off the mainland by US-flagged ships.[11]

Arizona Sen. John McCain called it "an antiquated law that has for too long hindered free trade, made US industry less competitive and raised prices for American consumers."[12] Nevertheless, Congress has consistently supported the Jones Act as vital to national security.[13][/quote]

I have family and friends down there and while they are doing ok for now, but things are going to get desperate real quick if supplies run out.

[Ridge]

[QUOTE=Cpn Crunch21;52720776]How about Trump or Congress waive the Jones Act to allow ships to go directly to PR instead of this ass backwards 'bring your ship to maimi to then go to PR'. Everyone is trying to send resources to the island but are bottlenecked by the port situation.

This article explains how fucked it is

[url]https://qz.com/1087325/what-is-the-jones-act-and-how-is-it-affecting-puerto-ricos-hurricane-recovery/[/url]

From the wiki [url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merchant_Marine_Act_of_1920[/url]

I have family and friends down there and while they are doing ok for now, but things are going to get desperate real quick if supplies run out.[/QUOTE]

The Jones Act prevents ships from making two consecutive visits, not any at all. Yes, it could still stand to be waived, but it's not as draconian as your comments or that blog make it sound.