Gov. Janet Mills (D-Maine) finally issued a press conference on the devastating storm that left hundreds of thousands of Mainers without power after coming under fire for her initial silence on the issue.
Mills began her Wednesday press conference by touting the state’s effort to restore infrastructure and imploring Mainers to “stay safe” and trust in the state’s efforts to keep them safe amid dropping temperatures, road closures, and continued power outages.
Following her speech, Mills was asked by a reporter about the state’s poor preparation for the storm.
“We prepare for every storm, for every emergency the same way,” said Gov. Mills.
However, the difference in preparation for this storm versus the much weaker Hurricane Lee earlier in the year are obvious.
Hurricane Lee, which made landfall in Maine in September, did far less damage to state infrastructure than this week’s storm.
Before Lee even made landfall in Maine, Mills declared a preemptive state of emergency and sought federal aid.
Roughly 50,000 people were left without power from Lee, while more than 400,000 homes were left without power from the recent storm.
No emergency was declared prior to the arrival of the wind and rain on Monday.
Mills only broke her silence more than 24 hours after the storm had subsided, and after members of the mainstream media had noted her lack of action of communication.
Mills issued no statements on social media from Dec. 13 to Dec. 19, but she issued a flurry of posts after political reporters began commenting on her absence.
Maine’s utility crews struggled to handle the staggering number of power outages, and seem only to have received help from out-of-state crews after the storm had already subsided, according to a post from Central Maine Power (CMP) on X.
The recent storm left at least two Mainers dead and two others missing, as efforts continue to repair the significant damage across the state.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="24124 https://www.themainewire.com/?p=24124">3 Comments
Janet Mills was nowhere to be found when the storm hit. I wonder where she was and what she was doing as prognosticators were issuing dire warnings? As usual now that she’s talking her comments are lies aimed at making herself look good.
but…but…but she wore Bean boots, blue jeans and a leather jacket while touring the damage! Tremendous photo op dontcha think, just like the proletarians she rules over !!
same roads as last deluge went out …AGAIN!! great preparation Janet, NOT!!!!