Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Saturday September 30 2017, @01:13AM   Printer-friendly
from the katrina-redux? dept.

The U.S. will temporarily waive the requirements of the Jones Act for Puerto Rico. The Merchant Marine Act of 1920, also known as the Jones Act, requires goods shipped between U.S. ports to be carried using American vessels crewed by Americans:

The Trump administration said on Thursday that it would temporarily waive a century-old shipping law for Puerto Rico that officials there said was hindering disaster relief efforts after Hurricane Maria.

The waiver of the law, known as the Jones Act, comes as federal and local officials report more supplies trickling onto the increasingly desperate island. But the Trump administration remains under pressure to step up the recovery effort.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, announced the decision on Twitter on Thursday morning, saying that President Trump had authorized it after a request from Gov. Ricardo A. Rosselló of Puerto Rico.

But the real problem for hurricane relief in Puerto Rico? A lack of truck drivers:

It's one thing to get supplies to Puerto Rico. But officials at the Department of Homeland Security, which administers FEMA, say moving goods around the island is the bigger challenge. Diesel is short. Drivers are scarce. And authorities say some roads are still impassable, although local officials dispute that explanation.

These containers were brought to the island by Crowley, a maritime shipping company. The company started unloading shipments on Saturday. By Friday, it will have received four ships, with a total of about 4,000 loaded crates. Crowley says it has more than 3,000 containers there now. That's just one shipping company, at one port. Several other ports are accepting shipments and stranded crates total an estimated 10,000. "This is food, this is water, this is medicine," says Vice President Jose Ayala, who notes a barge a day has arrived since the port opened on Saturday. "It has reached Puerto Rico. The problem is we can't get it on the shelves."

"Plenty of vessels can get cargo to the island," agrees Mark Miller, Crowley's vice president of communications. "But the real difficulty is getting the goods to the people via trucks."

FEMA: Puerto Rico situation has 'improved significantly'


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by RedBear on Saturday September 30 2017, @09:01PM (2 children)

    by RedBear (1734) on Saturday September 30 2017, @09:01PM (#575381)

    I would also love to live in a world where literally every single goddamn thing in our lives hadn't become irrevocably enmeshed in politics. Unfortunately, Trump.
    .
    .
    No, I said exactly what I meant to say.

    --
    ¯\_ʕ◔.◔ʔ_/¯ LOL. I dunno. I'm just a bear.
    ... Peace out. Got bear stuff to do. 彡ʕ⌐■.■ʔ
    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +1  
       Insightful=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Insightful' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   3  
  • (Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 02 2017, @03:41AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 02 2017, @03:41AM (#575746)

    If you aren't in the USA, ignore this, otherwise...

    All these problems would go away if people would just love their country and support their president. At minimum he's the best since Reagan, so any complaints are a personal problem with perfectionism. We dodged a bullet in the last election. We can mostly relax now -- there is a bit of unamerican globalist trash in congress to discard in the upcoming primary, but mostly we're in an OK situation right now.

    • (Score: 2) by RedBear on Monday October 02 2017, @05:48AM

      by RedBear (1734) on Monday October 02 2017, @05:48AM (#575779)

      All these problems would go away if people would just love their country and support their president. At minimum he's the best since Reagan, so any complaints are a personal problem with perfectionism. We dodged a bullet in the last election. We can mostly relax now -- there is a bit of unamerican globalist trash in congress to discard in the upcoming primary, but mostly we're in an OK situation right now.

      So much delusion in so few words. But the most important to directly address is this: Those of us who are #RESISTING our Nazi-loving Toddler-in-Chief love America just as much as you think you do. We just love a version of America that is actually free and democratic and filled with opportunity for all, while you love a version of America that is a hateful, frightened, racist, fascist, xenophobic theocracy. Trump is insane and un-American, and so are you. Supporting his insanity is not our job because this isn't a fascist dictatorship, nor would it make any of his administration's problems magically disappear. You think we dodged a bullet, but actually we elected the bullet, and it's busily drilling a giant hole right through the heart of the GOP.

      --
      ¯\_ʕ◔.◔ʔ_/¯ LOL. I dunno. I'm just a bear.
      ... Peace out. Got bear stuff to do. 彡ʕ⌐■.■ʔ