Gallego Travels to Puerto Rico to Survey Recovery and Assess Federal Response to Hurricane Fiona
WASHINGTON, DC – Last night, Rep. Ruben Gallego (AZ-07) returned from Puerto Rico where he spent the weekend meeting with Puerto Rican officials and federal disaster response workers to survey the damage caused by Hurricane Fiona and assess recovery efforts. Rep. Gallego was part of a Congressional Delegation led by Rep. Val Demings (FL-10) that included seven members of Congress.
On Sunday, Rep. Gallego and his colleagues joined Governor Pedro Pierluisi for a briefing on Fiona’s impact on Puerto Rico. Governor Pierluisi, Resident Commissioner Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colón, and officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) briefed the delegation on current conditions on the island and the efforts of the coordinated response. Rep. Gallego then traveled to various sites on the island to survey damage to infrastructure and hear directly from Puerto Rican residents on the costs and challenges of the destruction. While travelling the island, the delegation also helped distribute food and supplies to a rural community which was still without electricity or running water.
“There is still a lot of work to be done to get the island fully back on its feet,” said Rep. Ruben Gallego. “But speaking with Puerto Rican officials, emergency responders, and federal officials as we traveled to different communities revealed a strong, coordinated response to this disaster, but one that still has much work to do. Puerto Ricans are a resilient people, but we need to make sure we are getting them the help they need to recover from Fiona as quickly as possible. Puerto Ricans are American citizens, and I will keep fighting to ensure the federal government moves to assist their communities with the same urgency as it would for Americans on the mainland.”
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Rep. Ruben Gallego is a Marine Corps combat veteran who served in Iraq. He serves on the House Armed Services Committee, the House Natural Resources Committee, and the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.