A newly revived White House Puerto Rico task force will focus on advancing and rebuilding the island after Hurricanes Maria and Irma, last year’s earthquakes, and the COVID-19 pandemic instead of joining the congressional debate over Puerto Rico’s political status. Gretchen Sierra-Zorita, the White House’s associate director for Puerto Rico and the territories stated, “We […]
New Probe Confirms Trump Officials Blocked Puerto Rico From Receiving Hurricane Aid
April 23, 2021 By
An investigation confirms that the administration of former President Trump withheld $20 billion in hurricane relief for Puerto Rico after the devastating effects of Hurricane Maria, one of the deadliest U.S. natural disasters in more than 100 years. A Department of Housing and Urban Development Office (HUD) of Inspector General report found that tensions between […]
Trump Administration opposes giving Puerto Rico funds
March 28, 2019 By
The White House doubled down yesterday on President Trump’s comments opposing disaster funding for Puerto Rico, drawing outrage from Democratic members of Congress and raising questions about the administration’s rationale. On Tuesday, Trump told Republican legislators at a closed-door Capitol Hill meeting that Puerto Rico had gotten too much money to rebuild after Hurricane Maria. […]
FEMA to end housing program that is helping Puerto Ricans
September 14, 2018 By
As Hurricane Florence begins to lash the Carolinas, FEMA has told 987 Puerto Rican families who left their island after Hurricane Maria that check-out time is noon today because the federal government will no longer pay for their rooms. “I have roughly 48 hours to figure it out. What am I going to do?” said Vimarie Cardona on […]
Chef José Andrés’ shares his inspiring story about Puerto Rico
September 7, 2018 By
José Andrés wears his heart on his sleeve, whether that sleeve is part of an immaculate chef’s jacket or a stained T-shirt worn in the middle of a disaster zone. The Spanish chef, 49, owns and operates restaurants in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Las Vegas, Florida and Puerto Rico. He has hosted television cooking […]
The official death toll in Puerto Rico raised to nearly 3,000
August 30, 2018 By
After the governor of Puerto Rico raised the island’s official Hurricane Maria death toll to nearly 3,000 people, Puerto Ricans felt a range of emotions ― anger, frustration, grief ― but few were surprised. “I’m outraged but not surprised,” said Mariana Teresa Hernandez, a Puerto Rican mother who sent her two kids, ages 6 and […]
Another power outage in Puerto Rico hours after it was announced that it was finally restored
August 8, 2018 By
Hours after Puerto Rico officials announced that power had finally been restored to almost all of the island’s residents, a year after Hurricane Maria, a new problem with the power grid plunged thousands of people into the dark once again. Puerto Rico’s electric provider tweeted Monday that just 0.002 percent of its nearly 1.4 million […]
Two organizations sue FEMA after agency fails to release information related to Hurricane Maria
August 1, 2018 By
A reporting organization and a legal group filed a lawsuit against FEMA yesterday alleging that the agency has failed to release documents they requested detailing FEMA’s emergency relief efforts following Hurricane Maria last year. “FEMA has tried to escape accountability, dismissing our information requests for nearly six months now and trying to ignore our FOIA petitions,” said Executive […]
Puerto Rican mayor says the island’s profile has grown since Maria
July 31, 2018 By
Puerto Rican officials say they are encountering more sympathy from Washington since two hurricanes devastated the island last year, according to the mayor of Ponce. María Meléndez, a supporter of statehood for the U.S. territory, told The Hill she’s seen a change on Capitol Hill since the hurricanes raised the island’s profile in the media. Through constant visits and lobbying efforts, Meléndez is […]
FEMA denies housing aid to nearly 80% of Puerto Ricans applicants displaced by Hurricane Maria
July 18, 2018 By
After hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans displaced by Hurricane Marina were denied FEMA assistance to rebuild their homes, most of the families who have appealed the agency’s decision have not received aid. FEMA has either denied or not answered 79 percent — almost eight-in-ten — of the appeals, leaving residents and officials worried about […]
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