Puerto Rico seeks waiver of shipping restrictions to speed hurricane relief
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico/ NEW YORK, (Reuters) - Puerto Rico officials pressed the Trump administration yesterday to lift a ban on foreign shipping between American ports as the U.S. island territory struggled with fuel, water and medical supply shortages one week after Hurricane Maria struck.
Even as federal emergency management authorities and the U.S. military stepped up relief efforts, many residents on the island of 3.4 million people voiced exasperation at the prolonged lack of electricity, reliable drinking supplies and other essentials. Maria, the most powerful hurricane to hit Puerto Rico in nearly 90 years, swept across the island last Wednesday with roof-ripping winds, knocking out the territory’s entire power grid, unleashing severe flooding and causing widespread heavy damage to homes and infrastructure.
The storm claimed more than 30 lives across the Caribbean, including at least 16 in Puerto Rico. Governor Ricardo Rossello called the devastation an unprecedented natural disaster. Medical experts said they were concerned about a looming public health crisis posed by the island’s crippled water and sewage treatment system. The delivery of relief supplies has been complicated by disruption of telephone service and roads still damaged by flooding or left impassable by fallen trees and debris.