FEMA grants Puerto Rico hospital $150M for Hurricane María damage
- FEMA awards $151.6M to El Maestro Hospital for Hurricane María damage
- Funds include nearly $6.2M aimed to prevent future weather damage
- El Maestro Hospital has served the communities of San Juan since 1960
Tropical Storm Karen approaches in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, 24 of September, 2019. – As Puerto Rico still recovers from Hurricane Maria, Tropical Storm Karen is taking aim at the US territory. The center of the storm “will pass near or over Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands,” the National Hurricane Center said on September 24, 2019. (Photo by Eric Rojas / AFP) (Photo credit should read ERIC ROJAS/AFP via Getty Images)
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(NewsNation) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced it’s allocated more than $150 million for structure damage to a hospital in Puerto Rico following the impact of Hurricane María.
El Maestro Hospital, which has served the communities of San Juan since 1960, will be able to address repairs that include the installation of a central air conditioning system for the entire building, FEMA said in a news release. They’ll also replace parts of the infrastructure and electrical equipment, remedy mold problems, repair the stucco and paint the structure.
The award also includes nearly $6.2 million to prevent similar damage from future weather events.
Yarimir Rodríguez Díaz, the hospital’s executive director, explained that the institution is located in an extremely privileged area, since it is in the center of Hato Rey, next to Las Américas highway and shopping malls. The residents of around six neighboring homes for the elderly — such as Égida del Maestro, La Merced, Perpetuo Socorro and Égida de los Abogados — also benefit from the services of the medical institution.
El Maestro Hospital treats patients requiring hospitalization and outpatient care; it has a pediatric and adult emergency room, and an operating room for general and orthopedic surgery.
“All these improvements we are making will definitely result in a safer service. With the service we offer, which is a quality service that distinguishes us, patients will feel much more comfortable coming to Hospital del Maestro,” said Rodríguez Díaz.
To date, FEMA has awarded nearly $30.7 billion for over 10,700 public assistance projects aimed at rebuilding Puerto Rico.
