It’s been about four months since Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico, but the devastation still remains.
Thursday morning, Senator Mike Delph took a Point of Personal Privilege in Senate Chambers, speaking out in regards to his recent United States Military service in Puerto Rico.
As part of the FEMA Region Five Defense Coordinating Element, Delph was activated and deployed with the Army on December 8th, and returned to the United States on January 4th.
In his time in Puerto Rico, Delph helped state and local officials with resourcing, notably housing, water, and clothing.
He said homes are roofless, roads are still crumbling, and lack of power remains an ongoing problem.
But, he said there are ways to help.
“The biggest thing that we can do as fellow Americans in the States is to g down to Puerto Rico and spend money to help get their tourism economy back and humming. I think that will help as much as anything,” said Delph.
He added, “We’re not talking about a foreign country, we’re talking about American citizens, and an American territory that has been American since 1917. Which has been part of America since 1898.”