Puerto Rico has continued to deal with the effects from a hurricane that happened last fall. Hurricane Maria devastated the island causing mass flooding, destruction of power grids and many deaths which new reports reveal are up significantly than the previously stated number.
Puerto Rican officials on the island have determined that 1,427 deaths in Puerto Rico were caused by Hurricane Maria. The Federal Government had previously reported that only 64 people died as a result of the hurricane. The struggles that have faced the tiny island has been heavily downplayed by President Trump who praised the work that was done following the hurricane.
Trump was criticized early for not making as many resources available for Puerto Rico as he did in Houston after Hurricane Harvey. Trump did travel to Puerto Rico after the tragedy but was criticized for throwing paper towels into a crowd of desperate victims as if he was shooting hoops.
Puerto Rico has continued its efforts to gather funds to help rebuild, but as we reach the 11-month mark since the hurricane happened Puerto Rico is still underfunded in reconstruction. The U.S. Territory has requested $139 billion from Congress to go toward recovery efforts from the tragedy.
With hurricane season right around the corner, perhaps Congress will grant the Spanish speaking island the money necessary to rebuild.
