WASHINGTON – In the wake of Hurricane Maria, the American Maritime Partnership – the voice of the domestic maritime industry – today issued the following statement regarding the capacity and capability of Jones Act vessels to meet Puerto Rico’s present and future needs.
“Earlier today, the President responded to a question on the White House lawn regarding the need to waive the Jones Act for the recovery in Puerto Rico. He mentioned that the shippers are not in favor of waiving the Jones Act. He is right and here is why. What we are seeing clearly on the ground is thousands of cargo containers piling up at the port of San Juan, filled with essential goods that the Puerto Rican people desperately need, but not nearly enough trucks and clear roads to distribute the goods. So, the problem at the port is a lack of trucks and delivery routes, not a lack of vessels.
The President was also right when he said that we have a lot of ships out there right now. Much needed cargo has been delivered to the port, and an armada of U.S. and foreign vessels continues to arrive.
We continue to work hand in glove with the FEMA and the rest of the Administration to help find solutions to get the goods distributed from the ports to our fellow Americans, and the men and women of American and Puerto Rican maritime, along with foreign shippers, are answering the call.” – Thomas Allegretti, Chairman of the American Maritime Partnership
Click here for a CBS Twitter story recorded at the port of San Juan reporting on this problem.
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