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-Signs, Portents, and the Weather-
Puerto Rico aid is trapped in thousands of shipping containers
2017-10-01
[CNN] A mountain of food, water and other vital supplies has arrived in Puerto Rico's main Port of San Juan.

But a shortage of truckers and the island's devastated infrastructure are making it tough to move aid to where it's needed most, officials say.

At least 10,000 containers of supplies -- including food, water and medicine -- were sitting Thursday at the San Juan port, said Jose Ayala, the Crowley shipping company's vice president in Puerto Rico.

Part of the reason for the distribution backlog is that only 20% of truck drivers have reported back to work since Hurricane Maria swept through, according to a representative for Puerto Rican Gov. Ricardo Rosselló.

On top of that, a diesel fuel shortage and a tangle of blocked roads mean the distribution of supplies is extremely challenging. Even contacting drivers is a problem because cell towers are still down.

"When we say we that we don't have truck drivers, we mean that we have not been able to contact them," Rosselló said.

On Thursday the White House authorized a 10-day waiver of the Jones Act, a federal law that limits shipping to US ports by foreign vessels. Puerto Rico's governor and other US officials had argued that a waiver would expedite supplies to the island.
Posted by:Fred

#23  I was wrong, it is $118 Billion in debt.
Oy Vey.
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 21:28  

#22  Varoom! Varoom! Clank, clank, clank

]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

I've always loved stories about bulldozers.
Posted by: Besoeker   2017-10-01 20:38  

#21  Then there's option #2. Hire a boat load of Mexican truck drivers, fly them in, and put them to work using the excuse 'doing the jobs Americans won't do'. At least they speak the core of the local language.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2017-10-01 18:19  

#20   newc, I'd appreciate it if you would back off on the profane venting.

It's called Rantburg for a reason.
Posted by: Raj   2017-10-01 17:54  

#19  a tangle of blocked roads

When it rains here, two road graders in tandem come out to reshape the roads. One on the left, one right re-crafting the center crown with angled blades.

Hard to imagine the SeaBees couldn't do the same with a pair of CAT D12s.
Posted by: Skidmark   2017-10-01 17:35  

#18  It's not that current events wouldn't whipsaw the most reasonable of men into a frothing frenzy, but we're concerned you are going to blow a gasket, newc.

And yes, that jpg is funny as heck. Let them eat boxes!
Posted by: SteveS   2017-10-01 16:18  

#17  At #14, those eyes, that smile.
Posted by: Besoeker   2017-10-01 16:13  

#16  My apology KBK. I get heated. Feel free to delete from the board at will.
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 16:04  

#15  LOL newc.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru   2017-10-01 16:00  

#14  https://earloftaint.files.wordpress.com/2017/10/pr.jpg
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 15:56  

#13  newc, I'd appreciate it if you would back off on the profane venting.
Posted by: KBK   2017-10-01 14:14  

#12  At this point they have been given all they need to help themselves.

They refuse.

Let them starve.
Posted by: DarthVader   2017-10-01 13:09  

#11  M'Lady was watching Meet the Press this morning, when Chuck Todd was trying to stick it to President Trump over the lack of aid to Puerto Rico. So Chuck was working his agenda, and then he brought up reporters on the ground to supposedly verify what he was saying. They disagreed with him on the air and said that there is plenty of supplies but the truckers are not moving those supplies. They said that 10,000 troops are there doing their job, but only 20% of the drivers are at work. Chuck was very agitated because his narrative fell apart.

He tried to attack the President's tax plan, but the spokesperson invited to the show kept telling Chuck that he was wrong.

It was a veddy veddy bad day for Chuckie.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2017-10-01 11:44  

#10  pickup (qualified) volunteer drivers by helicopter.
Every volunteer driver area gets first delivery.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2017-10-01 08:28  

#9  Heavy lift copters. Just drop them in remote communities.

Then there is the French option*. Exercise your authority under Title X USC. Draft the drivers, tell them to report for duty, those who fail will be subject to Courts Martial.

*how they ended a railroad strike.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2017-10-01 07:49  

#8  Open up the ports for looting. Problem solved. Where's my consulting fee?
Posted by: Victor Emmanuel Ebbaise1246   2017-10-01 07:29  

#7  This belongs here: Puerto Rico mayor: Trump 'killing us with inefficiency'
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 04:02  

#6  That's the final straw. I AM getting ALL the GODAMN Unions out of MY Public services.
Because you are such a bunch of fucking gangsters that you want to negotiate contracts in a disaster while people are dying.

Want to see me hit the roof? Have not your stupid GOONION responsibilities fulfilled today.

What you fucking pieces of shit need is a baseball bat to the head.

I will fuck you up and you don't have to get paid to do your jobs you stupid democrat pieces of shit.

I fucking hate you. Fix it and I will maybe piss on you. But for now you are in hell.
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 03:52  

#5  A week. Think about it.
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 03:45  

#4  Part of the reason for the distribution backlog is that only 20% of truck drivers have reported back to work

I have not seen anything I'd consider definitive, but I keep seeing tidbits suggesting the Teamster's Union has gone on strike in San Juan and wants some contract concessions and changes to current laws before they will start moving supplies.
Posted by: SteveS   2017-10-01 03:33  

#3  This has been going on for over a week. I did not have a week last week.
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 03:30  

#2  And FUCK UNIONS. None of you are worth a fuck in any way, anymore ever.
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 02:21  

#1  You worthless scumbag commie UNION pieces of shit better be standing tall in less than two hours because right now, you are the eternal scum of the Earth, and Mother Mary will never be able to save you.

As this stands right now, I want to go down there with my Browning .50 cal and shoot up every tree, boat, house, car or union asshole standing in the way of this aid.

Or fuck it. May just finish the job with another cat5 because you are just fucking worthless to your fellow man.

Fuck Puerto Rico. There is no Puerto Rico. Just a bunch of democrat, marxist man pussies standing around watching two guys with a chainsaw fix their communities.

I will throw every one of you goonion pieces of fake human trash into federal pen for denying aid to starving and thirsting people. You are the scum of the earth.

If you are a Man, Go to town and fix YOUR GODDAMNED ISLAND before I wipe it all out permanently. And you may have passed that point right now.

You fucking assholes.

All this real estate belongs to me and you useless pieces of shit do not even pay rent. In fact, you charge US to live there.

Prepare to move because you have a nothing of a place and never made it better and your attitude sucks.

In fact, you will not be running this anymore if I have MY way.

Judgment IS pending.
Do not test me.
Posted by: newc   2017-10-01 01:21  

00:00