I'm afraid they could be true and would pray they were not if I were a praying person.
Refliefweb reports this today:
In Puerto Rico’s Devastated Inland Areas, Emergency Medicines Equip Doctors for Care
It’s a time when even getting a text message or a call on a cell phone seems like a small miracle. Rossotti and her team have been to a dozen clinics in the time since Maria made landfall, and her team has been working nonstop to provide care in shelters.
Diseases and conditions that arise when people live in close quarters and have limited access to hygiene are becoming common: pinkeye, lice, scabies, gastrointestinal issues. Mosquito-borne diseases that were a concern before, are heightened now with a profusion of standing water. Dengue, Zika and Chikungunya are a threat, Rossotti said. Leptospirosis is also a concern, the doctor said. With many people lacking access to water, they’ve turned to drinking from streams, which can be contaminated. The water-borne bacteria can cause organ failure if not treated in time.
When the group pulled up to the shelter, which was housed in one of Coamo’s elementary schools, Rossotti and her team checked in with the shelter supervisor, who directed them to a room they could use to set up a mini-clinic to treat residents. ... The library’s five tables would serve as an intake station for patients, a pharmacy and patient stations. A more secluded table would serve as a place for Dr. Shaila Hung, the psychologist who had traveled with the group, to see patients. Many of the fifty-seven people living at the shelter had not had any medical care since the storm made landfall, and residents began lining up for care before the group had even finished set up.
https://reliefweb.int/report/puerto-rico-united-states-america/puerto-rico-s-devastated-inland-areas-emergency-medicines
Many other reports on PR, VI, and other Caribbean islands here:
https://reliefweb.int/country/pri
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