U.S. has to up game on aid to Puerto Rico

The calls from various quarters for beefed up aid to the hurricane-ravaged island of Puerto Rico are well placed.

Even as of Friday, the island was without cellphone or internet service.

It’s been more than a week since Hurricane Maria roared through the Caribbean leaving little but wreckage in its wake.

Whether the criticism of President Donald Trump’s response to the crisis is accurate or not, there is no debate that the island of some 3.4 million people and a U.S. territory, remains a humanitarian crisis and the U.S. needs to do more.

Trump himself on Friday described the island as “literally destroyed.” While the island is run by an elected governor, the president of the United States is considered the head of state.

By some estimates, about 5 million Puerto Ricans live in the United States and roughly 300,000 in Connecticut.

U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, both D-Conn; Sens. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash; Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. wrote to Trump last week asking him to up the ante in aid to the island, and to the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The requests in the letter are reasonable, including upping the disaster declaration to the maximum level, which presumably opens the coffers and the availability of services to the highest level available.

It also asks for a special assistant for rebuilding to coordinate the numerous aspects of federal efforts.

And the senators asked for more money for Puerto Rico’s Medicaid program and urges the president to particularly focus on the restoration of electrical power by sending U.S. Department of Energy experts and 500 utility workers to the island.

These are not unreasonable suggestions. Hurricane Maria was the largest storm to hit this U.S. territory since 1928.

And while federal agencies like FEMA have moved into action, it’s understandable that after Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and now Maria have done their damage, the federal agencies that respond to such disasters are spread a little thin.

It’s not just the federal government that has to pick up the ball. The average citizen can help by contacting the Red Cross and any of the other local and national relief efforts that are so helpful in helping people caught in a disaster.

Each of the hurricanes of this extraordinary 2017 hurricane season has also fired the debate about climate change and global warming, some experts noting that the storms are irrefutable signs of mankind’s gnawing away at the environment.

Maybe so, but the time now is for action on the part of the U.S. government — and individuals — to help our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

It’s not just the federal government that has to pick up the ball. The average citizen can help.