Program:  Boots on the Ground in Puerto Rico Presented by: Wey K8EAB Wey was among the first to respond to the American Red Cross request to ARRL for amateur radio operators to provide emergency communications in the aftermath of the storm. Hurricane Maria, designated as such on September 9, 2017 intensified from Category 1 to 5 within an 18-hour period, and made its first landfall on the island of Dominica (J7) on the 18th of September.  It crossed the island of St. Croix, VI (KP2) with 175 mph winds on the 20th, losing some strength before making landfall in Puerto Rico (KP4) later that morning. Maria crossed the length of Puerto Rico from the southeast to northwest as a Category 4 storm with 155 mph maximum sustained winds and extremely heavy rainfall producing catastrophic flooding and leaving the island�s transportation, power, and communications infrastructure virtually totally destroyed.  The total number of storm-related deaths remains unresolved as of the current date, over nine months later. Part 97 of the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 47, consisting of telecommunication rules, governs the Amateur Radio Service.  Of the five basic purposes of the Amateur Radio Service, the first relates to emergency communications, which Wey and 21 other �Force of 50� provided while on the island.