INDIANAPOLIS — People in Puerto Rico are struggling to find food, water and a way to communicate, after Hurricane Maria devastated the island.

Nearly 3.5 million people are still without power.

Ships carrying aid are arriving daily.

4,000 members of the U.S. Army Reserves have been deployed.

So has a team from Indiana Task Force One.

Watching the devastation from afar, has been especially tough on Hoosiers with family in Puerto Rico.

At Pia Urban Café and Market, just east of downtown, Maria Bertram brought the flavor of her home country to Indiana.

She’s lived here for more than a decade and opened the restaurant a year and a half ago, selling island-grown coffees, authentic pastries and sandwiches.

Bertram’s parents and sister and most other relatives still live in Puerto Rico.

She says this past week has been emotionally trying.

“Usually you take for granted that you can reach out to your family at any time,” Bertram said. “But right now, they don’t have a way of communicating yet, so if you know somebody online it’s like, ‘oh! How is my family?'”

The strong storm bearing her name has made it extremely difficult to connect.

Most cell towers are gone on the island.

Maria wasn’t able to speak to her dad and find out if they were safe until he borrowed a phone and found a spot with service on Friday.

That was a week after the hurricane hit.

“I was here in the shop and I was so excited,” Bertram said. “I almost started crying because I was able to hear him on the phone, so I was very emotional.”

The shredded buildings and flooded streets are bad enough in Puerto Rico.

But it’s what you can’t see that’s also causing problems for families.

“Water and power really goes out pretty quickly and they’re still waiting for that,” Bertram said.

A satellite view from NOAA shows the power grid in Puerto Rico before and after the hurricane.

It shows much of the island is now in the dark.

That lack of power and cell service is tough on first responders, too.

Indiana Task Force One arrived in Puerto Rico Sunday night.

But after posting some pictures on Twitter, they were essentially back in a blackout, working Rescues and helping victims, without means of communication.

The need in Puerto Rico is great.

It is a disaster zone.

That’s why Maria Bertram and other Hoosiers are planning donation drives, to help loved ones – and others in need – recover.

“I can see the hearts and the desire to help our family in great need from far away,” Bertram said.

Source: WTHR