By Gabriella Muñoz - The Washington Times - Wednesday, September 12, 2018

President Trump doubled down Tuesday on presenting the federal response to the natural disasters in Puerto Rico as an “unappreciated great job.”

The president said the Federal Emergency Management Agency did good work after Puerto Rico was slammed by two major hurricanes in September 2017, despite working on an “inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan.”

Mr. Trump also touted the federal response in Texas and Florida as “A Pluses,” and insisted FEMA is ready for Hurricane Florence.

Almost 3,000 people died after Hurricane Maria, a Category 4 storm, slammed into the island. The devastation came just two weeks after Category 5 Hurricane Irma grazed Puerto Rico.

SEE ALSO: Ricardo Rossello, Puerto Rico’s governor, pushes back on Donald Trump’s praise of FEMA

The initial death toll of 64 was raised at the end of August to 2,975 after an academic study reviewed the damage.

The report found that the Puerto Rican government was not prepared to adequately respond to the storm. It said that there was a breakdown in communication and coordination between local, state and federal officials.

The state’s electrical grid failed after the storm, leaving thousands without power for several months after the storms passed.

Aside from the controversy, Mr. Trump continued to urge residents in the Carolinas and Virginia, especially those on the coast, to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Florence. The upcoming monster storm is expected to make landfall on Friday but affect the coastline as early as Thursday.

• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.

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