U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he’ll visit hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico.
Trump announced the visit after his administration was criticized for its response to the damage on the island that is home to more than three million U.S. citizens. The island has been coping with shortages of food, drinking water, electricity and various forms of communication after Hurricane Maria struck earlier this month.
Trump said next week is the earliest he can visit Puerto Rico without disrupting recovery operations.
“We have shipped massive amounts of food and water and supplies to PR and we are continuing to do it on an hourly basis,” he said.
Trump also agreed to boost federal disaster aid to the island, increasing funding to assist with debris removal and emergency protective measures, the White House said in a statement.
Donald Trump tweeted about Tuesday’s Republican primary in Alabama as much as U.S. territory Puerto Rico in recent days, with more tweets about the protests during the national anthem dwarfing all other subjects. (CBC)
While appearing at a joint news conference with Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rojoy later Tuesday, Trump said he would also visit the U.S. Virgin Islands, which also felt Maria’s impact.
“We’re doing everything in our power to help the hard-hit people” of both Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, he said.
‘All I do is work’
The president has drawn criticism for focusing in recent days while the storm’s impact was apparent on NFL players and their silent protests against the treatment of minorities during the national anthem, beginning with a speech in Alabama on Friday and then a series of tweets.
“I wasn’t preoccupied with the NFL, I was ashamed of what was taking place” said Trump when asked at Tuesday’s news conference. “To me that was a very important moment, I don’t think you can disrespect our country, our flag, our national anthem.
“I have plenty of time on my hands, all I do is work,” he added.
Lines of cars and people with gas cans trying to get fuel from a service station in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, in Aibonito, Puerto Rico, on Sept. 25. (Gerald Herbert/Associated Press)
Trump didn’t specify what “moment” he was referring to and why the issue has suddenly become a White House priority. Colin Kaepernick first staged a protest during the anthem in August 2016, and similar protests in the NFL were relatively muted during the first two weeks of this regular season. By contrast, some 200 players participated the past weekend after Trump’s intervention.
Trump’s ongoing war of words with athletes, which also included NBA players, led to a series of angry responses on social media, including from singer and Puerto Rico native Marc Anthony. He also drew criticism for a tweet Monday night related to Maria’s impact on the island which brought up Puerto Rico’s longtime difficulties with restructuring its “massive debt.”
Texas & Florida are doing great but Puerto Rico, which was already suffering from broken infrastructure & massive debt, is in deep trouble..
…It’s old electrical grid, which was in terrible shape, was devastated. Much of the Island was destroyed, with billions of dollars….
…owed to Wall Street and the banks which, sadly, must be dealt with. Food, water and medical are top priorities – and doing well. #FEMA
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders also rejected the notion at a news briefing on Monday that Trump was distracted from the big issues confronting the administration, and pointed out that Homeland Security Adviser Tom Bossert and Brock Long, administrator of FEMA, were headed to Puerto Rico to co-ordinate the response to the disaster.
Relief operations arriving by air
The president also signed a disaster declaration before Maria’s effects hit Puerto Rico, freeing up federal money for the response to the storm.
Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello said he spoke “as recently as last night” to Trump about the crisis Hurricane Maria caused on the island. He said he’s “confident the president understands the magnitude of the situation.”
Speaking to reporters Tuesday at a Puma gas facility in San Juan, Rossello said “the president has offered a waiver on matching funds” for aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which means the cash-strapped island won’t have to contribute to the initial costs of this federal help.
The Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan is handling nearly 100 arrivals and departures daily, including military and relief operations as well as more than a dozen commercial passenger flights per day.
The agency is taking reservations for arrival and departure slots to manage space at the airport and safely separate aircraft in the air.
This combination of photos released by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Puerto Rico at night on July 24, 2017, top, before the passing of Hurricane Maria, and on Sept. 25, days after the hurricane wiped out most of the island’s power. (NOAA via Associated Press)
The Federal Highway Administration is helping Puerto Rico with damage assessments so that emergency relief money can help restore roads throughout the island.
The top Republican leaders in Congress, meanwhile, are promising help for Puerto Rico, with Republic House Speaker Paul Ryan calling it a “humanitarian crisis.”
Both Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, also Republican, said Tuesday that they are working with the Trump administration and awaiting word on what resources and disaster relief will be needed.
Hurricane Maria has left millions of U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico without food, water and housing. Ryan told reporters: “They need our help and they are going to get our help.”
Ryan said the $15 billion US Congress passed early this month for hurricanes Harvey and Irma also applied to Puerto Rico.
Jose Garcia Vicente, right, works with Jose Colon, as he starts to salvage his destroyed home, in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, in Aibonito, Puerto Rico, on Monday. (Gerald Herbert/Associated Press)
Hurricane Maria is expected to pass North Carolina at least 240 kilometres offshore.
The storm on Tuesday centred about 285 kilometres southeast of Cape Hatteras, N.C., moving north at 11 km/h – a tropical storm warning was in effect for a swath of the North Carolina coast, from Bogue Inlet to the Virginia border.