AMO Currents - Jones Act carriers continue to deliver in Puerto Rico relief effort six months after Hurricane Maria

AMO Currents - Posted: March 23, 2018

Jones Act carriers continue to deliver in Puerto Rico relief effort six months after Hurricane Maria

The following article was released by the American Maritime Partnership, a coalition of which American Maritime Officers Service is a member and which American Maritime Officers supports.

It has been six months since Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico, dealing a devastating blow to the island. Since that time, domestic Jones Act ships have participated in what FEMA has called "the largest sea-bridge operation of federal disaster aid in FEMA history." In fact, in the six months since the Port of San Juan reopened, Jones Act carriers in regular service have delivered approximately 114,000 containers of government and commercial cargo. This cargo includes infrastructure materials essential for rebuilding and repairing damaged bridges, roads, and the electrical grid. As the rebuilding process continues, regular, cost-effective deliveries from domestic Jones Act carriers will be crucial to the long-term recovery of the island, which these carriers are committed to supporting. American maritime - including the hundreds of men and women who support this essential industry on the island - will continue to go beyond their call of duty to support Puerto Rico.

Jones Act carriers rose to meet the needs of the relief effort. After Hurricane Maria made landfall, Puerto Rico was in desperate need of supplies. In response to that critical need, Jones Act carriers added nine vessels to the regular trade, bringing the total number of vessels serving Puerto Rico to 25.

In anticipation of Hurricane Maria making landfall, Jones Act carriers staged critical supplies in San Juan. These carriers also coordinated with customers and other partners before the storm to ensure that the first ships, which entered San Juan as soon as the port re-opened, were filled with relief supplies.
Domestic carriers also acquired additional 53-foot containers (which increase load capacity by more than 40% compared to standard containers) and more chassis to support increased deliveries to the island.
Some Jones Act carriers increased vessel speeds to reduce transit times between the mainland and Puerto Rico, while simultaneously adding more voyages to their schedule.
Carriers extended their terminal hours and operated their terminals seven days a week, ensuring a steady flow of supplies into the port.

Domestic carriers are integral to Puerto Rico's recovery. Puerto Rico relies on reliable, regular service, more so today than ever. Domestic Jones Act carriers have invested more than $1 billion in assets to support their operations in Puerto Rico, including four LNG-powered containerships built for the trade. These long-term investments represent the carriers' commitment to Puerto Rico.

Domestic carriers have served Puerto Rico for decades. They have the infrastructure, employees, vessels, specialized equipment, and systems in place to serve Puerto Rico most efficiently, which was evident following the hurricane.
Jones Act carriers provide a reliable, valuable, and very cost effective northbound service to Puerto Rico manufacturers. On-island manufacturing plays a significant role in Puerto Rico's GDP, and the lower northbound shipping rates are critical to these manufacturers' ability to serve the mainland market - a service which will be important to Puerto Rico's recovery.

Jones Act carriers are going above and beyond to deliver specialized cargoes. In addition to the regular deliveries of commercial and relief cargo, the island was in need of atypical cargoes. Jones Act carriers were able to deliver these goods. This was due to their ability to rapidly deploy vessels to handle specialized cargoes, such as utility trucks, tanker trucks, large generators, and communication equipment, which are all needed for the rebuilding process.

The Jones Act industry has delivered 37,000 electrical poles to date, and will deliver a total of 65,000 poles, helping to support Puerto Rico's efforts to rebuild their electrical grid. This effort required the reconfiguration of vessels to accommodate the delivery of the poles. The industry has also delivered over 7,000 electrical transformers to the island to aid in electricity generation.
The industry also delivered nearly 7,000 TEUs of water to Puerto Rico in one week, taking a Jones Act vessel out of layup in order to accommodate the need for relief supplies.
Immediately after the storm hit the island, three American vessels were used as floating hotels to provide temporary housing and meals for 729 first responders.

Jones Act carriers are dedicated to the needs of the island, beyond delivery. The industry's support for the island did not stop with the delivery of goods.

The Jones Act industry has moved containers - filled with charitable donations from churches, schools and non-profit organizations - free of charge and helped organize weekly community events on the island. The industry also partnered with Walmart to organize a toy drive during the holidays.
The domestic Jones Act industry partnered with government agencies on the island to help manage "final mile" delivery, including using their own truck distribution network on the island to deliver supplies.
The Jones Act industry distributed food, water, ice, and other vital relief supplies, reaching more than 19,500 individuals throughout Puerto Rico immediately following the storm. Members of the industry also partnered with Operation Agua to deliver water filters to schools on the island.