Pablo José Hernández Rivera and 25 members of Congress ask Jenniffer González Colón for a Stafford major disaster

On August 14, 2026, El Nuevo Día reports from Washington that 25 Democratic lawmakers joined the call by Resident Commissioner Pablo José Hernández Rivera for Governor Jenniffer González Colón to ask Donald J. Trump for a major-disaster declaration over the water crisis. The letter says more than 180,000 households suffer rationing of up to 48 hours and that hundreds of thousands have had interruptions. It urges all categories of public, individual, and direct federal assistance. The people of Puerto Rico, they wrote, cannot afford more delays. If there is a major disaster, FEMA and the SBA could open aid and reimbursements. That conditional is the signers', not a White House announcement.

Signing, with Pablo José Hernández Rivera, are Darren Soto, Ritchie Torres, Nellie Pou, Jared Huffman, Bennie Thompson, and Senator Rubén Gallego, among others. Huffman and Thompson had asked this week, with Senator Martin Heinrich, that GAO investigate the crisis. On Thursday, Nydia Velázquez and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the governor and Donald J. Trump must do more. On Wednesday, a dozen led by Soto asked EPA to treat the crisis as an emergency. Those are distinct letters. This one covers Friday's to Jenniffer González Colón.

On August 25, El Nuevo Día covered, at another URL on this desk, Jenniffer González Colón saying from New York that the drought still does not reach a federal major disaster. That is a later reply. This note of the 14th is the request. The no of the 25th is not previewed. On August 4, NotiCel announced the rationing; on the 7th, Caribbean Business put more than 500,000 people. The letter uses 180,000 households. They are not averaged.

Anyone looking for the full list of the 25 has the El Nuevo Día URL at the foot. The body names Sam Liccardo, Jim Costa, Luz Rivas, Jimmy Gómez, Norma Torres, Ted Lieu, Sylvia García, Julie Johnson, Vicente González, Seth Moulton, Rob Menendez, Gabe Vasquez, Teresa Leger Fernández, Daniel Goldman, Val Hoyle, Andrea Salinas, Seth Magaziner, Emily Randall, and Adriano Espaillat. This is not original reporting.

Source: El Nuevo Día. https://www.elnuevodia.com/corresponsalias/washington-dc/notas/pablo-jose-hernandez-y-25-congresistas-reclaman-a-jenniffer-gonzalez-solicitar-una-declaracion-de-emergencia-a-trump/