Pence, In First Visit To USVI, Says Trump Administration Committed To Help Territory Fully Recover

ST. CROIX — In his first visit to the USVI, accompanied by his wife and other federal government officials, Vice President Mike Pence restated the Trump administration’s committment to sticking with the U.S .Virgin Islands until the American territory fully recovers from Hurricanes Irma and Maria, providing not only disaster assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but also recovery help, including assistance to rebuild the islands.

Hurricane Irma wreaked havoc on St. Thomas and St. John, while Hurricane Maria devastated St. Croix. The storms brought the entire territory to its knees, slamming all four — including Water Island — at the highest category. For Mr. Pence, who received an aerial tour of the entire territory, seeing firsthand the vast damage caused by the storms was “overwhelming,” he said, adding, “but the resilience of the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands is even greater. We will be with you every day until the Virgin Islands comes all the way back.”

Mr. Pence said Mr. Trump wanted to make the trip to the territory, but logistics would not permit. “He wanted us to be here in the U.S. Virgin Islands to say very plainly and simply we are with you today, we will be with you tomorrow, we will be with you every day until the U.S. Virgin Islands comes all the way back,” the vice president said. As part of his stops, Mr. Pence visited the Holy Cross Episcopal Church in Upper Love, where he met with parishioners and clergy, with Mr. Pence’s wife, Karen, who the vice president calls the family’s “prayer captain,” leading congregants in prayer.

Mr. Pence also visited the shelter at the St. Croix Education Complex, where he spoke with the shelter’s management as well as residents and children.

Governor Kenneth Mapp, as he’s done many times, reaffirmed his gratitude to the Trump administration and its commitment to help the USVI rebuild. And the governor said he was impressed by Mr. Pence’s sincerity as the vice president surveyed the damaged schools, hospitals and battered homes. “I was gratified by it and honored to be in the middle of it,” Mr. Mapp said, speaking during his Friday press briefing at Government House here.

Relative to the recovery effort, the governor shared the following information:

1. The government will make payroll next week, as well as the beginning of overtime payments to first responders who have been working long hours. The overtime payments will be made either on Thursday along with regular pay, or on Friday as a supplemental payment, the governor said. A final determination on the exact day next week will be made by Tuesday.
2. As the territory moves to the recovery portion of its response to the two hurricanes, shelters are continuing to close. Mr. Mapp said residents were being moved from the Canegata Ballpark facility to the St. Croix Educational Complex. “This government will never put anyone out of a shelter and onto the street,” Mr. Mapp stressed.
3. Cruise lines, desperate for ports for their customers as many Caribbean destinations were hammered by the storms, are eager to resume calls to the territory in both the St. Thomas-St. John and St. Croix districts, the governor said. The cruise lines are also helping both the government and private sector business owners by sending in teams to help get services online. There’s even a plan to dock a cruise ship in the Christiansted harbor, the governor said. Even so, Mr. Mapp stressed that the government has been careful not to simply accept all requests at this juncture, as such a move would hurt the territory’s tourism product in the long run. Cruise officials will be in the territory within the next ten days to make assessments.
4. V.I.P.D. Commissioner Delroy Richards urged residents to exercise caution during the weekend, especially at nights, as the governor has extended the curfews until 8:00 p.m. territory-wide through Monday. On St. Croix, curfew hours are 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m., and on St. Thomas, St. John and Water Island, the curfew hours are 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.
5. The governor confirmed that the Frenchman’s Reef & Morning Star Marriott Beach Resort in St. Thomas will be closed for about a year for repairs. The facility employs 400 full-time and part-time workers, according to the governor. Notwithstanding the loss of jobs, the governor said those affected will receive unemployment benefits, and he pointed to the hundreds of construction jobs coming online. The Ritz-Carlton in St. Thomas will also be conducting repairs.
6. The Department of Health continues to give out toddler and infant kits on St. Croix at its Charles Harwood Facility from 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
7. D.O.H.’s ambulance boat has been repaired, and therefore is once again available for servicing patients who need to travel back and forth between St. Thomas and St. John.
8. According to William Vogel, federal coordinating officer of FEMA Region II, 22 percent of St. Thomas has been restored with power, and 12 percent of St. Croix. Relative to cellphone coverage, 41 percent of St. Thomas is covered and 37 percent of St. Croix. There is so far zero cellphone coverage on St. John.
9. Mr. Mapp is pleased with the pace of road-clearing and debris removal work on St. Croix. However, the governor isn’t satisfied with the pace of work on St. Thomas and St. John. He floated the idea of sending some St. Croix companies to the aforementioned islands to help speed up the process.
10. There will be no press briefings on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Briefings will resume Tuesday.