President Joe Biden on Monday will survey damage from Hurricane Fiona in Puerto Rico, where tens of thousands of people are still without power two weeks after the storm hit.
The Category 1 hurricane knocked out electrical power to the US territory of 3.2 million people, 44 per cent of whom live below the poverty line.
Power has been restored to about 90 per cent of the island's 1.47 million customers, but more than 137,000 others, mostly in the hardest hit areas of Puerto Rico's southern and western regions, continue to struggle in the dark. Another 66,000 customers are without water. Biden has pledged that the US government will not abandon Puerto Rico as it starts to rebuild again, five years after the more powerful Hurricane Maria devastated the island in 2017.
During his visit, Biden planned to announce the administration will provide USD 60 million through last year's bipartisan infrastructure law to help Puerto Rico shore up levees, strengthen flood walls and create a new flood warning system so the island will be better prepared for future storms, the White House said.
“We see what you're going through, and we're with you,” Biden told Puerto Ricans and Floridians in a message on Sunday on his official Twitter account.
Florida is cleaning up after Hurricane Ian churned across that state last week, killing more than 60 people, decimating some coastal communities and flooding others. Biden plans to visit Florida on Wednesday to survey damage.
The president, accompanied by first lady Jill Biden and Deanne Criswell, the Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator, was to touch down Monday in Ponce, Puerto Rico, a city on the southern coast. Most of the storm damage is in southern Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico Gov Pedro Pierluisi said he would update Biden on recovery efforts.
“We will make sure to keep working together to ensure the continuity of a reconstruction already underway," the governor tweeted on Sunday.
Fiona caused catastrophic flooding, tore apart roads and bridges, and unleashed more than 100 landslides when it hit Puerto Rico on September 18.
At least two people died after being swept away by floods, and several others were killed in accidents related to the use of candles or generator during the island-wide power outage. Government officials have estimated some USD 3 billion in damages, but warn that costs could rise significantly as evaluations continue.
Some people in Puerto Rico wondered whether Biden's visit would change anything as they recalled how President Donald Trump visited after Hurricane Maria hit as a more powerful Category 4 storm in 2017, and tossed rolls of paper towels into a crowd in a display that riled many.