Puerto Rico's governor calls for greater federal response to Maria

Source: Politico




By COLIN WILHELM 09/24/2017 10:44 PM EDT

Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello called on the Pentagon to provide more search-and-rescue help and humanitarian resources to help the beleaguered island recover from “complete devastation” from Hurricane Maria.

“We need more resources from the Department of Defense so we can get helicopters and resources,” Rossello told POLITICO in a phone interview Sunday night. “We know that there are capabilities in the surrounding areas, helicopters, planes and so forth," he said. "And our petition is for us to be able to use them.”

A Defense Department spokesperson said in an e-mail that six Navy helicopters and three Marine Osprey planes capable of vertical takeoff and landing had begun search-and-rescue operations and damage assessments.

Days after the category 4 hurricane battered the island, only a handful of municipalities have been able to make contact with San Juan or the outside world. That has prompted the commonwealth government to dispatch runners to make contact, since roads throughout much of Puerto Rico have been made impassable.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/24/puerto-rico-hurricane-maria-governor-243081