I found this on Facebook about Puerto Rico:

[icymist]

Sad news indeed!
I found this on Nevenka Savovic's feed. Very powerful . . .
Via Bobbie Folz

"I'm in Puerto Rico. I work as a power operator for the electric company. I have a 32 week pregnant wife, this is the first time since our collapse that facebook newsfeed logged and updated. This is my top story. I am enraged and desperate.
First off, Fema has federalized our gas and diesel channels. The lines at a gas station to fill your tank is around 12 hrs. I've done it twice. They have hoarded all resources and manpower meaning transportation truckers capable of supplying gas stations. Fema right now has made the gas crisis horrible. I travelled far to find family members since communications are down. All condos have no diesel so no water can go up the pumps to flush. The smell of shit and piss is beyond this hemisphere. Because of no diesel we are having our sick dying in their homes. Some died bc of oxygen failures bc their generators eventually died but bc of no way to get a drop a single drop of diesel or gas for a week. I found most of them. I still after a week cannot see my mom, a mountainside of dead trees are in the way making it impassable. I called her she has food and water for a day more. Thats gonna be my mission tomorrow. Get my mother some food.

Most and i mean almost all trees in the island are dead. Meaning no vapor. No clouds. No rain. We have to reforest inmedietly or we become a desert island. A dead island. I cannot recall a day where i looked up and saw no clouds. Its been a week now and the sight is terrifying. There have been absolutely no drops of any supplies to anyone. At all. There has been no msg on radios nor speakers regarding supply drops or water. Jones act prevents ships from around the world to come directly here without it stopping first in the US then having those supplies moved to a US shipping container and then sent here. So now the world can see the horror of that. They cannot send help directly and time is running out. As i write this i'm on a ceiling of the third home i called home during this disaster. As water and supplies and dangers arise we have to keep moving. My wife's best friend lost her pregnancy during this ordeal. Now im so terrified of my wifes pregnancy. I've no damn idea how in 7 weeks i'm gonna help my baby girl survive this heatwave that never stops now we lost our vegetation and she cannot travel bc of advance stage pregnancy. I felt useless trying to console my wife bc her bf baby died. Btw thank you airlines for charging 2k for a plane ticket when they normally sell for 300 so people can get away. I can see the small isla grande airstrip from here and see the little planes leave at all times , they are ferrying people to the dominican republic and then fly to the states. Granted our main intl airport suffer the lost of the traffic control for 30 miles and commercial flights are hesitant to come. Thanks for the price hike. Get the damn army to put a radar like in a war zone and get us moving. Anyway. This is my rant. I'm just desperate. I hope its not like what i heard at the bank line today that all trump said was that we need to pay wall street our debt while we are dying here and then he talks about peaceful protesters taking a knee on the anthem.

Originally posted by Lisa Innis-Ros

I am not familiar with the source so take from this what you can.

[secondwind]

1. As far as I know, the dumbass has still not suspended the Jones Act.

[icymist]

5. He was refusing to do it because of 'business interests', but now claims to be considering it...

Trump considers shipping waiver for Puerto Rico aid

President Trump on Wednesday said he is considering waiving U.S. shipping restrictions under the Jones Act to help disaster aid reach Puerto Rico.

The administration faced a backlash earlier this week for suggesting that an exemption from the shipping rules is not needed for Puerto Rico, where officials estimate parts of the island could be without power for up to six months in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

...The nearly century-old law enjoys strong support from the maritime and shipping industry.

“We have a lot of shippers, a lot of people that work in the shipping industry that don’t want the Jones Act lifted,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “And we have a lot of ships out there right now.”

http://thehill.com/policy/transportation/352791-trump-considers-shipping-waiver-for-puerto-rico-aid

[wasupaloopa]

2. We could fly C-130's there and air drop supplies. The drop zone would have to be secured

so that people don't fight over them. We could have delivery systems in place then fly over and do a dust off like they did in Vietnam.

[elehhhhna]

4. Ships are bigger. If the ports are jacked up use tenders.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

7. The ports are a problem.

Almost half still out of service with the rest only partially accessible. And the roads FROM the ports to much of the interior of the island are still fucked up. Anything that makes it into San Juan port -- the only one I am seeing ships going to right now -- will still have to be airlifted to much of the island.

[wasupaloopa]

10. The supplies can't get to the interior because

of road damage planes fly over it

[AtheistCrusader]

11. We ARE doing that.

http://www.amc.af.mil/News/

The military IS doing its job. FEMA IS doing its job. These people are working around the clock.

Take issue with Trump on the Jones Act, for sure, but lets not pretend nobody's doing anything.

[icymist]

14. Did you read the OP? That guy is pretending?

Sheesh!

[AtheistCrusader]

33. Yes, and Puerto Rico is an island with 3.4 million people on it.

Logistics takes time. Everything is broken. That doesn't mean the military/civilian response isn't putting it's best foot forward.

[SharonAnn]

15. Our military has personnel and lots of equipment. Call up National Guard.

I'm told military can set up communications in a day or two, practiced for battlefield conditions and this would work the same way.

I'm not saying it's easy, I'm saying we need organization and resources. To start with, use our military resources - temporary bridges, patched up roads, distribution of supplies via truck/helicopter, etc. construction equipment, etc.

We could do it if we were committed to doing it.

[AtheistCrusader]

34. There were over 5000 national guard activated and in place before the storm hit.

Maryland Task Force One got there, mostly on Monday.

The things you are asking about are actually happening. It just takes time. That's what the supplies in place, the people in place are supposed to buy you, while outside aid arrives, because it's logistics and that's an unforgiving thing under the best conditions.

These are not the best conditions.

[pangaia]

16. Skimming that site. it LOOKS like very little in fact is being done.

[AtheistCrusader]

35. There will be a lot more posted in the coming weeks.

At the moment they can spare little manpower to take pictures and such.

They're stretched to the limit. Most of the gulf and gulf states need aid, and they are getting it. Mexico needed aid, and they got it.
Time, distance, volume. Realities that can only be worked with, and cannot be ignored.

[pangaia]

36. Thanks....

[byronius]

3. This event is going to be a thick chapter in plenty of books.

It's purposeful large-scale punishment of Americans for being non-white.

Murder.

[brush]

27. trump dragging his feet on the Jones Act is going to ruin him. There are going to be deaths...

while he decides.

The situation is dire and he's fucking deciding.

[pangaia]

37. That's kinda my take as well.

If this were, oh Kansas......

[Hell Hath No Fury]

6. This jibes with what I am seeing/hearing --

Last edited Thu Sep 28, 2017, 05:31 AM - Edit history (1)

from family and friends in PR. They are focusing too much on the port/airport at San Juan. They need massive drops of supplies (food/water/generators/fuel) all across the island -- no time to wait on getting the roads cleared to have trucks bring in supplies everywhere they are needed. There are isolated towns, especially in the mountains, that have NO chance to get what they need via road. The PR police/Guard have started to do some drops with the limited choppers they have access to, but we need the full resources of the US military at this point.

[mia]

8. "thank you airlines for charging 2k for a plane ticket when they normally sell for 300"

Isn't this price gouging?

http://thehill.com/homenews/news/352591-lawmakers-press-doj-about-airfare-price-gouging-in-puerto-rico

Several lawmakers are calling on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate reports of price gouging among airlines offering flights out of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.) penned a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Tuesday asking the DOJ to investigate reports "that airlines are price gouging as people are attempting to leave the Caribbean, in some cases due to urgent health needs."

"We believe expanding the scope to include monitoring and terminating instances of price [gouging] will benefit American citizens during this time of crisis," the letter concludes.

Several other lawmakers signed on to the letter, including Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) and Jenniffer González-Colón (R), Puerto Rico's resident commissioner....

[pangaia]

17. I have NO reason not to believe the poster. In fact I DO believe him/her, I forget..

But just doing a quick EXPEDIA search turns up 1-way flights on Monday Oct 2 SJU to MIA or JFK selling for about $675.

[icymist]

23. I don't think that people without power can use expedia at the moment.

The whole island seems to be one huge mess with only those lucky enough to be in a big city getting the privilege to wait in line 12 hours for any supplies.

[pangaia]

25. Good points.

Si i wonder of airline "agents" are over charging or..who?

[Not Ruth]

9. We need for everyone to make their way to the beaches and set up FEMA camps

Once there, they can be reached via sea, to receive aid or to be relocated. That eliminates the logistical issues of roads, electricity, airports and docks.

[riverbendviewgal]

12. Puerto Rico people are Americans

Bring most of them to the USA.

[lastlib]

18. But they're brown people.....

(AND black people!) PLUS, they vote Democrat. Let 'em drink champagne......

sez our "DEAR LEADER".... . . . . . . .

"Get that sonofabitch off the field!"

[cwydro]

31. Not true.

75% of Puerto Rico is white.

[lastlib]

32. AnusMouth doesn't know that....

It's in his head that they're *not white*, so eff 'em. If they were winners like him, they wouldn't live on an island in the middle of a "very big ocean", thus wouldn't need help--therefore, they don't deserve it.

I have little doubt he thinks like that.

[Dustlawyer]

13. I have been where they are at except that we could get away from the no electricity, water or food

after the water levels went down in 3-4 days. Using captured rainwater to flush, hearing rumors of this church or that parking lot they are giving away water, only to be met with a long line and after waiting for hours, they run out of water before you can get there. 95 degree days with 94% humidity and no AC day after day. It is unsustainable long term. The water, gas and food you stocked up runs out, panic sets in and people do crazy things. The thing that helps are the people who step in and do wonderful things, but even they run out.

What is wrong with our country? Donald Trump is not the only leader we have! Where is our military? Where are our Senators, our Congressmen and women? Where are all of these Christian values leaders?

Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan, you guys have a lot to answer for!!!

[pangaia]

19. Nothing wrong with our country.

It is the fascists in control.
putin, dugin, bannon, and all the fake religious wackos and the Lindsey Graham crackers of the world who will have their balls cut off by the Kochs of the world if they don't repeal the ACA, destroy Medicare and SS and take everything from poor and middle class human beings and give it all to the oligarchs.
It is about the total disruption of western civilization.

Nothing less.

WAKE Up folks...



Not aiming at you, dustlawyer.

just everybody.

[Girard442]

22. The idiots who wanted to burn it all down...

...somehow thought they'd burn it all down in some sort of abstract philosophical sense.

[Girard442]

21. Unfortunately Trump is the Commander-in-Chief.

There may be standing orders to cover certain contingencies, but I can't imagine major relief operations could take place without his authorization without outright insubordination.

[BadgerMom]

20. Silly thing for me to note, but

We visit St. John, USVI annually. Consequently, I follow USVINPS (national park) on Instagram. They posted this week for the first time since Irma hit. They said some trees and bushes are budding already. Some tiny bit of green is evident. Fingers crossed for Puerto Rico.

[greytdemocrat]

26. That mention

of "all the trees are dead" is ridiculous. They have
had the leaves stripped. They grow back. Just from
that I distrust that FB post.

[greyl]

29. There hasn't been enough coverage of Puerto Rico to reach you.

Photos of tree damage, well beyond stripped leaves

Info on assessing if a damaged tree can be saved:
https://texashelp.tamu.edu/browse/by-type/naturally-occurring/severe-weather/trees/

But anyway, what do you suppose leaves do? Look pretty?

[Bettie]

24. All of that seems in line

with what a friend in PR has been saying when she can get a message out to us.

[Duppers]

28. OMG! Kicked & Recommended.

I am speechless.

This needs to be broadcast 24/7 everywhere and shared across all social media.

Rot in hell Trump.

[snooper2]

38. I just looked at the radar on my weather app and it shows rain on West side of Puerto Rico

"Most and i mean almost all trees in the island are dead. Meaning no vapor. No clouds. No rain. We have to reforest inmedietly or we become a desert island. A dead island."


This makes no sense