Puerto Rico's Troubles
Vox:
At Vox, we decided to compare what the government has been saying with other reports of deaths from the ground. We searched Google News for reports of deaths in English and Spanish media from Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria. We found reports of a total of 81 deaths linked directly or indirectly to the hurricane. Of those, 45 were the deaths certified by the government. The remaining 36 deaths were confirmed by local public officials or funeral directors, according to the reports. We also found another 450 reported deaths, most of causes still unknown, and reports of at least 69 people still missing.
CNN:
As of Wednesday 89% of the island was without electricity and almost 47% had no phone service, according to a website set up by the Puerto Rican government. Some 43% of the island's 313 bank branches remained closed, it said.
EPA:
There are reports of residents obtaining, or trying to obtain, drinking water from wells at hazardous waste “Superfund” sites in Puerto Rico. EPA advises against tampering with sealed and locked wells or drinking from these wells, as it may be dangerous to people’s health.
KFF:
Since the hurricane, there has been some discussion of whether the U.S. public is aware that Puerto Rico is part of the United States. The public largely knows that most residents of Puerto Rico are U.S. citizens (76 percent), including at least seven in ten across parties. This is higher than a recent online poll conducted immediately after the hurricane, which found just over half of the public was aware that people born in Puerto Rico are U.S. citizens.1 This difference may be due, at least in part, to the differences in question wording, poll methodology, and/or timing of the poll.
...
In the wake of the hurricane and the devastation it caused, some have questioned whether the federal government is doing enough to respond. About half (52 percent) of the public says the federal government is notdoing enough to restore electricity and access to food and water in Puerto Rico, while four in ten say the federal government is doing enough. This varies greatly by party. Three-quarters of Democrats (74 percent) say the federal government is not doing enough while the same share of Republicans feel it is (74 percent). A majority of independents say the government is not doing enough (54 percent), compared to 38 percent who say it is. People who feel that most people in Puerto Rico are getting the help they need are much more likely to say that the federal government is doing enough (78 percent), whereas those who feel like most Puerto Ricans are not yet getting what they need are most likely to say the federal government is not doing enough (75 percent).
