The agency plans to “officially shut off” its aid in the U.S. territory on Wednesday, NPR reports. It is handing over the role of distributing food and water to the Puerto Rico Emergency Management Agency.
FEMA’s public affairs director told The Hill that the aid was “no longer needed” because “the commercial supply chain for food and water is re-established and private suppliers are sufficiently available.” FEMA says it will continue to support volunteer agencies and other nonprofit organizations operating on the island.
But residents in Puerto Rico aren’t so convinced that the humanitarian crisis is over. Four months after Hurricane Maria, roughly 20 percent of the island is still without power.
“This is the kind of indifference that must be stopped. Enough,” San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz tweeted after FEMA’s announcement. She has been one of the most vocal critics of the federal response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
On Monday night, Cruz will attend President Trump’s State of the Union as a guest of New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. “I hope [Trump] uses tonight to apologize, even if he doesn’t say sorry — if he makes right what’s wrong,” said Cruz.
This story was originally published by Grist with the headline FEMA is ending its emergency response in Puerto Rico. on Jan 30, 2018.