The Navy hospital ship Comfort arrived in Puerto Rico Tuesday as part of the federal government's stepped up support for the island territory in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
The Comfort docked in San Juan four days after it departed from its base at Norfolk, Va. and hours after President Donald Trump arrived to tour the devastation.
The Comfort has been deployed in response to numerous other humanitarian disasters, most notably the devastating 2010 Haiti earthquake.
The Trump administration has been heavily criticized for what's been seen as a slow response to Maria, the most powerful hurricane to hit the island in nearly a century. The storm unleashed floods and mudslides that knocked out the island's entire electrical grid and telecommunications, along with many roads.
Nearly two weeks after the storm hit, much of the countryside is still struggling to access such basic necessities as food, fresh water and cash.
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), there are now more than 10,000 federal officials on the ground on the island, and 45 percent of customers now have access to drinking water. Businesses are also beginning to re-open, with 60 percent of retail gas stations now up and running.
The Health and Human Services Department says federal medical teams with their own equipment and supplies have been sent to help provide care at Centro Medico, a major trauma center in San Juan. Additional teams have been sent to five hospitals in other parts of the island.
For many, however, Washington's response isn't enough. On Monday, the nonprofit relief group Oxfam announced that it would be taking the rare step of intervening in an American disaster, citing its outrage over what it called a "slow and inadequate response."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
