President Joe Biden speaks at the Phoenix Awards Dinner in Washington, D.C., on Saturday. He will visit storm-damaged Puerto Rico on Monday and Florida on Wednesday. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI | License Photo
Oct. 3 (UPI) — President Joe Biden will travel to Puerto Rico on Monday and Florida on Wednesday to view the damage done last month during Hurricanes Fiona and Ian. The White House made the announcement on Saturday with few other details. Fiona knocked out power to all of Puerto Rico on Sept. 18 as a Category 1 hurricane. The island territory was still covering from 2017’s Hurricane Maria when the storm hit. Advertisement
Hurricane Ian caused catastrophic damage to Fort Myers, Fla., and surrounding areas when it struck last week as a powerful Category 4 hurricane, one of the strongest storms ever to hit the United States.
Biden, who will be joined by first lady Jill Biden, will tour Ponce, Puerto Rico. Power has been restored to 86% of the residents there as of Sunday after Fiona plunged the entire island into darkness.
“They will meet with families and community leaders impacted by Hurricane Fiona, participate in a community service project to help pack bags with food and other essential items, and thank the Federal and local officials working around the clock to help the people of Puerto Rico recover and rebuild,” a White House official said, according to CNN.
Advertisement
“The President will also receive a briefing on ongoing recovery efforts.”
According to PowerOutage.us, more than 615,000 residents remain without power in Florida. Federal and local responders had performed more than 700 rescues in the state from high waters.
RELATED Hurricane Orlene set to strike Mexico on Monday
“We’re just beginning to see the scale of that destruction,” Biden said on Friday, according to Politico. “It’s likely to rank among the worst in the nation’s history. You have all seen on television homes and property wiped out. It’s going to take months, years to rebuild.”
Biden to visit Puerto Rico on Monday, then Florida
- Advertisment - 