The Case of the Abandoned Water Bottles

Trouble viewing? [Click here.]( Daily Debunker 15 September 2018 The Case of the Abandoned Water Bottles. This past week, almost a year after Hurricane Maria devastated the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, leaving more than 50,000 people without access to food or drinking water, an estimated 20,000 pallets of bottled water were found sitting on a landing strip near the easternmost tip of the island. It was estimated that the total number of water bottles could have run into the millions. The question was, why were they just sitting there unused? Thus far, it has been difficult to get a consistent answer from the two main entities involved, FEMA and the government of Puerto Rico. FEMA says the water was “excess inventory” made available to local authorities to distribute; Puerto Rico says they weren’t notified that the water was released for distribution until April 2018, by which time it had a “foul odor and a bad taste.” Neither has taken full responsibility for the fiasco. [Read more]( Rumor Rundown Katrina Lockdown. Were inmates abandoned at Orleans Parish Prison during Hurricane Katrina? Inmates at Orleans Parish Prison reported that they spent several days in flooded cells without food or water while awaiting rescue after Hurricane Katrina. ([Mixture]() Divine Retribution. Did Billy Graham’s daughter say 9/11 was “God’s punishment” for trans people, evolution, and secularism? During a 2016 radio interview, Anne Graham Lotz said “God allows bad things to happen” like the September 11 attacks “to show us that we need Him.” ([Mixture]() Running on MAGA. Did a clerk refuse to sell gas to a man fleeing a hurricane over a Trump bumper sticker? This is the definition of junk news. ([False]() Dubious Advice. Can mobile phone users update their voicemail greetings without cellular service? A "hurricane tip" circulating online would not, in fact, help everyone who might be affected by Hurricane Florence. ([Mixture]() Abstruse Homily. Did Pope Francis say “Exposing pedophile priests is Satan’s work?” A disreputable web site chose to over-simplify and sensationalize a real homily delivered by the pope in September 2018. ([Mixture]() Keep Out. Was the Georgia state line “blocked off” because of Hurricane Florence? A Facebook user's bogus claim about hurricane escape routes was spread online even by people who proclaimed to know it was false. ([False]() Storm Killer. Did a man die from shooting a gun at Hurricane Florence? A report that a Facebook event encouraging people to "shoot guns at Hurricane Florence" had caused the storm's first fatality was junk news. ([False]() Dear Nike. Did the National Association of Police Organizations call for a boycott of Nike? The police union's president called Colin Kaepernick a "shallow dilettante" who disrespected the American flag in a letter to Nike's CEO. ([True]() In the News Former Construction Executive Claims President Trump Ordered Braille Removed from Trump Tower Elevators. Barbara Res, who oversaw construction of the Trump Tower and is now a vocal critic of the president, recounted the alleged incident in a September 2018 op-ed. [Read more]( Facing Criticism Over Past Climate Reporting, BBC Commits to Reining in ‘False Balance.’ “You do not need a denier to balance the debate,” read a briefing sent to the BBC editorial staff. [Read more]( Russian Suspects in Poisoning: We Were in UK as Tourists. The two Russian men spun an unlikely tale of hapless tourists defeated by grim British weather. [Read more]( ‘It Looked Like Armageddon:’ Deadly Gas Blasts Destroy Homes. Emergency crews responded to what they believe is a series of gas explosions that have damaged homes across three communities north of Boston. [Read more]( White House Defends Trump on Puerto Rico Death Toll Claim. Public health experts have estimated that nearly 3,000 perished because of the effects of Maria. [Read more]( Government Offers Separated Families a 2nd Shot at Asylum. The settlement could give "well over 1,000 parents" a second chance at asylum. [Read more]( Kavanaugh Denies Allegation of Sexual Misconduct in School. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh s denying a sexual misconduct allegation from when he was in high school. [Read more]( $1.5M Settlement for Muslim Workers Fired in Prayer Dispute. A big U.S. meatpacker has agreed to pay $1.5 million to 138 Somali-American Muslim workers who were fired from their jobs at a Colorado plant after they were refused prayer breaks. [Read more]( New York Times Walks Back Article Over ‘Unfair Impression’ of UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. The newspaper said that their report "should not have focused" on the former governor of South Carolina. [Read more]( Missouri Town Gets New Newspaper, The Uranus Examiner. Uranus sits along historic Route 66 and is known for quirky attractions, including a fudge shop and the world's largest belt buckle. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- You are currently signed up to receive our daily newsletter, the “Daily Debunker.” You will only receive it on the days selected in your preferences center. View your preferences[here](. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Forward This Email]( Staff Pick Did Marilyn Monroe Have an IQ of 168? Claims that Marilyn Monroe had an extremely high intelligence quotient are frequently offered up without any proof. ([Read more]() Snopes.com has long been engaged the battle against misinformation and fake news online, an effort we couldn't sustain without the support of our readers. If you'd like to learn more about how you can assist us, click [here](. If you'd like to make a monetary contribution, click the button below. 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