On September. 25, 2017, Hurricane Maria, one of the strongest hurricanes ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean, made landfall in Puerto Rico as a strong Category 4 Hurricane.  In one of the worst natural disasters in the recent history of the United States, vast amounts of damage and human suffering occurred during the storm and in the ultimately lengthy and ongoing recovery process on the island.

Residents struggled to get by without basic necessities like food, water, electricity, and housing, as roads were blocked and there was initially a severe shortage of supplies to distribute to the needy. To date, for example, only around 15% of Puerto Ricans have electricity, while many hospitals are running low on medicine are being forced to evacuate patients to other hospitals or US medical ships off the coast. A large number of roads remain blocked, and many are still being forced to live with very little water and food.

These problems were especially pronounced in rural, isolated parts of Puerto Rico, where communication with other parts of the island was impossible due to the near total loss of power.  Although there has recently been an unprecedented amount of charitable donations, resources, and aid distributed to Puerto Rico by countless Americans and many first responders in the past week’s, serious questions have been raised about the efficiency and speed of the response of the Federal Government, local officials, and the President to the tragedy that continues to unfold in the storm-ravaged territory.

Although there are certainly serious concerns about the length of the recovery effort and the vast amounts of people still left without adequate power, food, and water, I feel that some of this criticism has been politically motivated out of an effort to gain leverage in national debates by politicizing tragedies. On the other hand, many have also been willing to dismiss most or all criticisms of the recovery effort, though many officials involved in this process have complained they haven’t been given the support they need, both from the Federal Government and local authorities.

Although almost all would agree that the main priority following a natural disaster on the scale of Hurricane Maria should be focused on ensuring that the homeless and those lacking other important resources are cared for and protected, sadly even this great human tragedy has become the latest battlefield in the increasingly divided political environment our country is now witnessing.

Following quickly after the Hurricane left its enormous destruction, individuals from all parts of the political spectrum were quick to rate the performance of officials and politicians on their response to the crisis, often stating that the Federal Government wasn’t moving quickly enough to assist Puerto Rico or simply couldn’t be bothered to do so. The Mayor of San Juan, Carmen Yulin Cruz, for example stated days after the Hurricane that the government was “killing us with their inefficiency”, and later added that lack of a sufficient response would result in a “genocide”. She has also insinuated that the government was leaving the people of Puerto Rico to die on purpose due to their lack of effort.

Although her and others frustration with the fact so few people have power and easy access to supplies so long after the storm is completely understandable, it doesn’t take into account the amount of volunteers and supplies that have been directed to Puerto Rico thus far, along with the difficult clean-up conditions present that make movement extremely difficult.

Government officials like the head of the disaster management agency FEMA, Brock Long, have mentioned and praised the efforts of thousands of military personnel on the island, and touted the arrival of several supply ships carrying much needed cargoes of supplies. Even this act, however, has been made difficult by severe damages sustained in ports that make the arrival of these ships more difficult. Many supply ships, both American and foreign, have also had their hands tied by Federal Laws such as the Jones Act, passed in 1920. This law states that ships travelling between US ports must be US built, American constructed, and American commanded and staffed, therefore preventing foreign aid and ships owned by Americans but built elsewhere from assisting.

Additionally, FEMA and other government management agencies only have the authority to replace the infrastructure damaged or destroyed by the Hurricane, which is difficult to approximate. They are therefore given only limited funds for their efforts, and must wait until further congressional action gives them additional funds to continue repairs, and take steps to make the island more hurricane resilient in the future.

Finally, the sheer amount of destruction those assigned with rescues and repairs were faced with makes me think that much of the criticism of first responders was misplaced. Hurricane Maria was a truly unprecedented storm in terms of its power and overall impact on the island, which government sources saying substantial damage was done to almost all airports, hospitals, roads, and many homes. This type of destruction cannot be quickly or easily replaced, no matter how hard first responders are working, and with their numerous logistical challenges.

In the midst of this entire event, President Trump and other government officials have come under fire for a perceived lack of empathy towards the people of Puerto Rico. The President has been most sternly criticized for tweets he has sent out, in which he appears to claim the response to Hurricane Maria was well executed because fewer people died in Puerto Rico than in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.

He has also claimed that “no one could have done what I’ve done” for Puerto Rico, and even said in a visit to the island that the Hurricane and its aftermath had “thrown our budget a little out of whack”. While it is certainly good news that the death toll was lower than Hurricane Katrina, and it is true that additional budget matters will have to be determined at some point, many would argue that speaking about them in that tone was inappropriate, especially so soon after the disaster.

Regardless of the political debate surrounding this massive natural disaster, one thing all Americans can take pride in is the massive outpouring of support to Puerto Rico from hardworking and patriotic Americans of all political ideologies, races, and backgrounds. Companies like Google and Starbucks have pledged to raise millions of dollars for Hurricane relief, while celebrities have also pledged their financial support to the island. Perhaps most impressive, however, is the widespread support from ordinary Americans throughout the country who donated millions of dollars worth of much needed supplies to the island. In an especially divisive political and societal climate, one in which we are often subject to news articles and television reports focused on the negative side of humanity, one silver lining from this national disaster may be that it reveals the inherent goodness and generosity of the American people.