When Hurricane Maria touched down in Puerto Rico in 2017, very few people could have initially imagined what type of impact it would make on the country. To this day, the country is looking to rebound from around 3000 fatalities, and close to $90 billion in damage. Now a hero who us sports fans remember from The Mighty Ducks film Brock Pierce is the solution to cleaning up future scandals and disasters as he works his way into the White House.
Part of the reason why the country is still struggling to recover to this day is connected to how the government responded to the disaster. There is a lot that could have worked to help with infrastructure in the eyes of 2020 presidential candidate Brock Pierce. Puerto Rico was struggling quite a bit with their infrastructure and technology to begin with, and this only shined a bigger light on those issues.
US government’s response faced a huge backlash
One of the earliest major issues many had was the slow response after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. Many Puerto Ricans felt like they were treated like second rate citizens.
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The first misstep was the US Department of Homeland Security not waiving the Jones Act. This would have allowed the country to receive aid from outside of the United States. It set the tone for the rest of the response to be slow and methodical, as millions struggled to get back on track.
Pierce believes that Puerto Rico should have been prioritized during its most vulnerable moment. Millions of people felt the effect in some way. From deaths to financial ruin, it left Puerto Ricans looking for answers from the government, but they received little to no answers promptly.
Whitefish contract
The contract with Whitefish Energy to repair Puerto Rico’s power grid faced a lot of backlash right away as well, and it showed a lack of understanding to get the country back on track.
After facing severe backlash, a formal request was eventually made for the Whitefish contract to be terminated. Even though the company began work and hired over 300 subcontractors, the deal faced cancellation. There are estimates that the whole fiasco set recovery back by 10 to 12 weeks.
Preparing Puerto Rico, and others, for the future
Puerto Rico’s location makes it a prime spot for hurricanes to hit every single year potentially. Hurricane Maria exposed a complete lack of reliable technology infrastructure in the country. It is something that Pierce, if elected, will focus on in all areas lagging behind.
Proper technology infrastructure will allow areas to bounce back a bit quicker. It will also help create jobs and improve connectivity with the rest of the world. Puerto Rico has long been neglected, but Pierce feels that they deserve the same treatment as any other city in the United States.