--- description: Twitter users criticized Brock Long after he called the Puerto Rico relief effort "the most logistically challenging event" for the U.S. title: FEMA Chief Slammed For Puerto Rico Relief Comments image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt061d40fd5b39cc9b/6988e015e76ad25a8562f5fe/gettyimages-854272242.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Puerto Rico](/tag/puerto-rico/) ## Puerto Rico Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # FEMA Chief Slammed for Calling Puerto Rico Relief Efforts the 'Most Logistically Challenging Event' by [Kevin Lui](/author/kevin-lui/) ## Kevin Lui Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 2, 2017 7:04 AM CUT  FEMA Administrator Brock Long talks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House, Sept. 26, 2017. FEMA Administrator Brock Long talks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House, Sept. 26, 2017.Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images by [Kevin Lui](/author/kevin-lui/) ## Kevin Lui Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 2, 2017 7:04 AM CUT Twitter users criticized Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) administrator Brock Long in droves Sunday, after he called the disaster relief effort on Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria “the most logistically challenging event” for the U.S. Long [made the comment](http://www.foxnews.com/transcript/2017/10/01/brock-long-defends-federal-response-to-hurricane-maria.html "undefined") on _Fox News Sunday_, when asked whether it was appropriate for acting Homeland Security chief Elaine Duke to call the relief effort a “[good news story](http://time.com/4963526/elaine-duke-good-news-reaction/ "undefined").” “The bottom line is, is this is the most logistically challenging event the United States has ever seen and we have been moving and pushing as fast as the situation allows,” he told host Chris Wallace. Long’s comments attracted scorn on Twitter, where many pointed out that the U.S. had managed many complex logistical arrangements decades before. > [](https://twitter.com/empireburlesque/status/914522821786775552) Many comments pointed to past U.S. military action, citing World War II battles that America was involved in or the Berlin Airlift as examples. > [](https://twitter.com/ZoomsZoomz/status/914503413521666048) > [](https://twitter.com/paulkrugman/status/914569810964512768) > [](https://twitter.com/TexDem16/status/914525214263988224) Others cited the Moon landings and manned space missions as examples of the U.S. managing to pull off intense logistical arrangements. > [](https://twitter.com/mattyglesias/status/914513241786732544) > [](https://twitter.com/IraPulverman/status/914505599454347264) > [](https://twitter.com/cassandra17lina/status/914519151082864642) Some suggested that the Trump administration’s pre-disaster planning efforts, more than anything else, were at fault. > [](https://twitter.com/juliettekayyem/status/914504016847151109) “It’s not only a logistically complex event, just getting to the islands and being able to support an island that was hit not just by one major hurricane but two within basically a 10-day period,” Long said when Wallace followed up on the logistical complexity comment. Puerto Rico [has been struggling to recover](http://time.com/4962669/puerto-rico-hurricane-maria-trump-aid/ "undefined") from the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria, which hit the island almost two weeks ago, causing widespread flooding and wiping out the territory’s[ power grid](http://time.com/4963240/hurricane-maria-puerto-rico-electrical-grid/ "undefined"). The federal government has been [slammed](http://time.com/4964280/hurricane-maria-puerto-rico-second-class-status/ "undefined") for its response to the disaster, which many on the island have [called inadequate](http://time.com/4964280/hurricane-maria-puerto-rico-second-class-status/ "undefined"), while President Donald Trump has [engaged in a series of Twitter attacks](http://time.com/4963932/san-juan-mayor-responds-to-donald-trumps-twitter-attack/ "undefined") on the mayor of San Juan who had called on him to help. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4964574/hurricane-maria-fema-brock-long-puerto-rico-logistics/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4964574/hurricane-maria-fema-brock-long-puerto-rico-logistics/"},"headline":"FEMA Chief Slammed for Calling Puerto Rico Relief Efforts the 'Most Logistically Challenging Event'","datePublished":"2017-10-02T07:04:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:54:54.251Z","description":"Many pointed to logistically complex feats like the Berlin Airlift or the Moon landings","url":"https://time.com/4964574/hurricane-maria-fema-brock-long-puerto-rico-logistics/","keywords":["Puerto Rico","FEMA","onetime","Hurricane Maria"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt061d40fd5b39cc9b/6988e015e76ad25a8562f5fe/gettyimages-854272242.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Kevin Lui","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/kevin-lui/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt061d40fd5b39cc9b/6988e015e76ad25a8562f5fe/gettyimages-854272242.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"FEMA Director Brock Long And Homeland Security Chief Duke Discuss PR Situation","caption":"FEMA Director Brock Long And Homeland Security Chief Duke Discuss PR Situation","creditText":"Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/puerto-rico/","name":"Puerto Rico"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4964574/hurricane-maria-fema-brock-long-puerto-rico-logistics/","name":"FEMA Chief Slammed for Calling Puerto Rico Relief Efforts the 'Most Logistically Challenging Event'"}}]}] ```