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Locals struggle to get information on loved ones in Puerto Rico

In this Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017 photo, Maribel Valentin Espino sits in her hurricane-destroyed home in Montebello, Puerto Rico. Espino and her husband say they have not seen anyone from the Puerto Rican government, much less the Federal Emergency Management Agency, since the storm tore up the island. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
In this Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017 photo, Maribel Valentin Espino sits in her hurricane-destroyed home in Montebello, Puerto Rico. Espino and her husband say they have not seen anyone from the Puerto Rican government, much less the Federal Emergency Management Agency, since the storm tore up the island. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) In this Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017 photo, Maribel Valentin Espino sits in her hurricane-destroyed home in Montebello, Puerto Rico. Espino and her husband say they have not seen anyone from the Puerto Rican government, much less the Federal Emergency Management Agency, since the storm tore up the island. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

By Rosana Hughes 4 min read

For some local Puerto Ricans, communication with family members is limited or nonexistent, even a week after Hurricane Maria ripped through the island.

Jordan Adams, a student at Southern Adventist University, said he and his family members on the U.S. mainland have not heard from their family in Puerto Rico at all. He said there are some people in one of his classes who have family there as well, but only a few have been able to make contact.

“My grandmother knows the family members there, so my mom has been using my grandmother to try to get communication going, trying to figure out, ‘Are they OK?’ What’s going on, what’s the status?” he said.

He said communication has been an uphill battle, “with more going downhill than up.”