Hurricane Maria barrelled into Puerto Rico seven years ago, wreaking major destruction, killing thousands of residents, and leaving massive numbers of people homeless. Approximately 5.8 million mainland Puerto Ricans (including people of Puerto Rican heritage) and the 3.3 million island denizens must grapple with yet another painful anniversary while most other people have forgotten about the natural disaster—and the tragedy it wrought.
It’s unbelievable that Puerto Rico has not yet recovered from the hurricane’s destruction. One wonders if that recovery will ever be complete without drastic changes both on the island and in its relationship to its colonial overlords in Washington, D.C.
Meanwhile, many of those who lost family members, friends, and neighbors attend memorial services or simply light a candle in their names. They are not—and never will be—forgotten. You can read some of their names and stories here in this database, which was collected by reporters from Quartz and Puerto Rico’s Center for Investigative Journalism.
Here at Daily Kos, we have continued to cover Maria’s aftermath and other stories about Puerto Rico, and will continue to do so. Immediately after Maria, on Sept. 27, 2017, we created a community group called SOS Puerto Rico, and since that time staff writers and community members have posted 634 stories to the group. You can follow the group, search its tag, or ask to join.
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Journalist Julio Ricardo Varela, who founded Latino Rebels, wrote this opinion piece for MSNBC back in February, which Voto Latino linked to on X (formerly Twitter):
The article is titled, “One statistic captures Washington’s indefensible treatment of Puerto Rico”:
Ever since Hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated Puerto Rico in September 2017, leading to underreported death counts, months without power and billions of dollars in damages, the 3.2 million people there and 5.8 million Puerto Ricans stateside have gone through a soul-searching about where Puerto Rico will go next. The biggest question is whether the island and its people will ever be treated fairly by the federal government.
There’s good reason for that question: A federal audit released this month found that only $1.8 billion of the $23 billion earmarked to help the island recover from the 2017 hurricanes and from earthquakes in 2019 and 2020 has been spent. That’s barely 8% of the allocated money, a figure so minuscule it confirms what most Puerto Ricans already know. The federal government’s relationship with the island is downright colonial.
The response to Maria began with then-President Donald Trump throwing rolls of paper towels to those in need and despite some slight improvement during President Joe Biden’s administration, FEMA’s track record is one of utter failure, mismanagement and cultural ignorance.
“A mere 8% in recovery spending is a reminder that so many leaders do not see the urgency in protecting the well-being of Puerto Ricans,” Erica González, director of the Power 4 Puerto Rico coalition, told me. The coalition lobbies for greater legislative interest in the island.
The United States Government Accountability Office published “Puerto Rico Disasters: Progress Made, but the Recovery Continues to Face Challenges” in February, which Varela referenced. Here’s what they had to say about why recovery has taken so long:
Why GAO Did This Study
In September 2017, hurricanes Irma and Maria caused billions of dollars in damage to Puerto Rico’s infrastructure, housing, and economy. Earthquakes in 2019 and 2020 caused additional damages. More than 6 years after hurricanes Irma and Maria, Puerto Rico’s recovery is ongoing. FEMA is the lead federal agency assisting Puerto Rico’s recovery operations. It administers the Public Assistance program to provide grant funds to repair and rebuild damaged infrastructure, such as schools and the power grid, among other things.
GAO was asked to review federal recovery efforts in Puerto Rico. This report addresses: (1) the status of permanent recovery work in Puerto Rico using Public Assistance; (2) the extent to which FEMA and Puerto Rico’s government have addressed challenges to starting and completing permanent recovery work; and (3) the results of FEMA efforts to monitor Puerto Rico’s use of grant funds. For this report, GAO analyzed relevant FEMA and Puerto Rico government documents and conducted site visits; and interviewed FEMA, Puerto Rico, and grant subrecipient officials,
What GAO Recommends
In prior work, GAO made two recommendations to FEMA related to the management of risks to the remainder of Puerto Rico’s recovery that still warrant action. FEMA concurred with these recommendations and has drafted a risk management plan in response, but has yet to finalize this plan and demonstrate efforts to continuously monitor risks to the recovery.
That last line really struck me. All of this taking place over six years later? I’m not impressed.
Juan Declet-Barreto, a social scientist studying climate vulnerability, just wrote about one of the major ongoing issues for The Equation in “Seven Years after Hurricane María, in Puerto Rico You Can’t Even Count on Keeping the Lights On”:
LUMA, the private consortium in charge of electricity distribution, is not capable of reliably maintaining vital electric service on the island. The most recent proof of this prior to tropical storm Ernesto occurred in June of this year, when more than 340,000 subscribers were left without electricity in the midst of a terrible heat wave. This prompted the energy regulatory body, the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (NEPR), to demand explanations from LUMA for the 19% increase in power outages between 2023 and 2024.
And why so many outages? Laughably, LUMA says it took on the task of removing overgrown vegetation, since this is “the main cause of service interruptions in Puerto Rico,” a misleading statement according to the Center for Investigative Journalism (CPI). According to LUMA, if the foliage is not to blame, then the fauna is: mice, iguanas, cats, and monkeys are all suspected of causing the blackouts on the island. Everything except its own incompetence and negligence.
It is infuriating that seven years after Hurricane María, after the $750 million cushion that taxpayers in Puerto Rico were forced to contribute so that LUMA could enter the market, after firing the experienced line workers and dismissing their union contracts, after at least seven increases in the electricity rates (after LUMA promised that there would be no such increases), Puerto Rico does not have reliable electricity at prices that the majority of our people can afford.
Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez of New York tweeted about Maria’s ongoing aftermath:
There are also issues we don’t often think of—like the long-term impact on survivors.
Pearl Marvell wrote “Climate change stresses physical and mental health in Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands” for Yale’s Climate Connections:
Extreme hurricanes, flooding, and rising temperatures are piling more pain on island residents already suffering the effects of colonization and systemic inequality, according to the fifth National Climate Assessment.
Puerto Rico has seen an alarming increase in deaths over the last two years caused by cardiovascular conditions, diabetes, and mental health conditions like overdose, alcoholism, and dementia. There are a number of reasons for this, but the Fifth National Climate Assessment released last month warned that more intense and frequent hurricanes and other extreme weather events caused by climate change will likely bring more illness, higher mortality, and an overall decrease in quality of life to citizens in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“Perhaps we are among the least responsible for climate change, but we are being among the most impacted,” said Pablo Méndez-Lázaro, one of the lead researchers of the chapter. Méndez-Lázaro is also associate professor at the department of environmental health of the University of Puerto Rico graduate school of public health.
One big complication: Many health care professionals left Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, and the island has lost 46% of its practicing doctors in the past decade. Hospitals and health programs closed, and the hardship worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. One study conducted after Maria found that one in 14 school-aged children on the island had post-traumatic stress disorder due to the hurricane.
Sam Menendez directed an hour-long 2022 documentary about Maria that not only profiles the survivors but has sound bites from then-President Donald Trump—a chilling reminder of his callousness.
Speaking of Trump, here’s another reminder:
A group of Nuyorican poets gathered last Saturday at the Hurricane Maria Memorial in New York City’s Battery Park to honor those who were lost as well as the survivors.
If you are visiting New York City or live in the area, please pay a visit.
Segundo Cardona and Antonio Martorell, creators of New York State's Hurricane Maria Memorial "My Cry Into the World," describe the artwork’s development from concept to realization and discuss how they incorporated references to Puerto Rico, nature, and culture.
What memories do you have of Hurricane Maria? Join me in the comments section below to share them, and for the weekly Caribbean News Roundup.