Trump Failed the Americans of Puerto Rico
The death toll is now estimated at 4,645, and the president’s lack of engagement is largely to blame.
Still waiting for help.
Photographer: Gary Williams/Getty Images
The death toll from Hurricane Maria appears to have been 4,645, despite the official count of 64. That’s 4,645 citizens of the U.S. It’s a disgrace.
To be sure, the Trump administration isn’t entirely responsible for this disaster. It’s going to be difficult, perhaps impossible, to assess how much of it had to do with the federal government’s indifference and ineffectiveness; how much was the fault of current Puerto Rican government officials; and how much was the effects of long-term Puerto Rican poverty and structural conditions. And, in any case, assistance and recovery for the Caribbean island was going to be difficult, and the storm would have been devastating under the best of circumstances.