FEMA abruptly removed statistics from its website indicating half of Puerto Ricans had access to drinking water and 5 percent had electricity less than a day after posting the metrics.
The information detailing the federal response to Hurricane Maria was initially put out Wednesday on FEMA’s webpage, but was removed by Thursday morning.
FEMA spokesman William Booher noted that the statistics remain on a website maintained by Puerto Rican Gov. Ricardo Rosselló, which currently indicates 54 percent of Puerto Ricans have access to drinking water and 9.2 percent have electricity. Booher also pointed out that the metrics are presented in conference calls with reporters twice a day but did not explain why they were removed from the FEMA webpage.
“Our mission is to support the governor and his response priorities through the unified command structure to help Puerto Ricans recover and return to routines. Information on the stats you are specifically looking for are readily available” on the website maintained by the governor’s office, Booher told The Washington Post.
President Donald Trump has maintained that the federal response to the Category 4 hurricane was well coordinated and he has repeatedly accused the media of exaggerating the plight of Puerto Ricans.
We have done a great job with the almost impossible situation in Puerto Rico. Outside of the Fake News or politically motivated ingrates,…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2017
Trump was roundly criticized in the days following the hurricane for emphasizing Puerto Rico’s weak infrastructure and blaming ineffective leadership for delays in delivering badly needed aid to the island. During his Tuesday visit to Puerto Rico Trump congratulated Puerto Rican officials on their efforts and praised his own administration’s response to the disaster.
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