Trump Hails Hurricane Recovery Efforts as He Visits Puerto Rico

Last Updated: October 3, 2017 12:17 PM

- Peter Heinlein

WHITE HOUSE -

U.S. President Donald Trump is visiting Puerto Rico Tuesday, hailing recovery efforts in storm-ravaged areas of Texas and Florida, and praising first responders battling to save lives nearly two weeks after Hurricane Maria roared through the Caribbean.

"In Texas and in Florida we got an A+, and I'll tell you what, I think we've done just as good in Puerto Rico, and it's actually a much tougher situation," Trump told reporters on the south lawn of the White House as he and First Lady Melania Trump departed for San Juan.

The president's visit includes meetings with Puerto Rico's political leaders, possibly including San Juan's Democratic mayor Carmen Yulan Cruz, who had responded angrily to an administration official's comment that relief efforts on the island were "a good news story."

Trump said he thinks the mayor may have changed her mind about Washington's disaster response. "Well, I think she's come back a long way. I think it's now acknowledged what a great job we've done, and people are looking at that."

The president admitted a lot more must be done, and he called on locals to do more to rush aid to isolated regions.

"On a local level, they have to give us more help. But I will tell you, the first responders, the military, FEMA, they have done an incredible job in Puerto Rico," Trump said.

Almost two weeks later no debris is being removed in most of the neighborhoods of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Oct. 2, 2017. (Photo: C. Mendoza / VOA)

Meeting with governor, military personnel

During his five-and-a-half hours on the ground, the president and his team are meeting with Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello, military personnel and people impacted by the storm. Trump also is holding talks with Governor Kenneth Mapp of the U.S. Virgin Islands, which also were hit by Hurricane Maria last week.

Rossello told a news briefing Monday in San Juan that more than 720 of the island's 1,100 gas stations are now up and running, and that he expects more fuel supplies in the coming days. Puerto Rico relies on fuel supplies shipped from the mainland United States.

The governor said more than half the water and sewer services are still not restored, and that federal and local authorities are working together to keep 50 of the island's 69 hospitals operational. He said the U.S. Navy hospital ship Comfort was due to arrive Tuesday or Wednesday.

FILE - Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz arrives at San Francisco hospital in Rio Piedras area of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Sept. 30, 2017.

Rossello generally has praised the response to the hurricane by the Trump administration, despite criticism from Mayor Cruz and many citizens who say the slow pace of the relief effort is endangering the lives of thousands of storm victims.

Trump had fired back at the mayor, saying on Saturday that she was told by Democrats, "you must be nasty to Trump."

Cruz, whose home was damaged in the storm, is living in a shelter with her family.

"There's only one goal and it's saving lives," Cruz said Sunday on ABC's This Week, when asked about Trump's comments about her. "Any dialogue that goes on just has to produce results. All I did last week, or actually even this week, is ask for help."