It’s been a week since Hurricane Maria made landfall in eastern Puerto Rico, and hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans living in remote villages remain cut off from the world, after the storm trashed power grids, tore up roads, downed cell towers and caused a dam in the northwestern part of the island to fail, endangering tens of thousands of people living in a valley below.

Hospitals, especially in rural areas, have been hopelessly crippled by the storm, which has left them dependent on backup generators for power, threatening the lives of thousands of vulnerable patients. Shipments of diesel fuel to the hospitals are delivered by armed guards to protect against looters – which sounds like something from the plot of one of the “Mad Max” movies.

CNN sent low-flying planes over the island to survey the landscape, and they’ve brought back some stunning footage of the damage. News anchor Jake Tapper tweeted this before-and-after photo, which shows how more than 90% remains mired in blackouts more than a week after the storm made landfall.

Puerto Rico before the hurricane:

And after:

Some meteorologists said Maria hit Puerto Rico with the flooding of Hurricane Harvey in Houston, and the windspeeds of Hurricane Irma in Florida.

“It is as if Puerto Rico got hit with the strength of Irma’s winds, leaving a trail of devastation worse than much of the destruction Irma left in Florida,” said CNN meteorologist Judson Jones. “The rainfall in some areas of Puerto Rico rival the amounts of rain left by Harvey in Houston. And now they are contending with a dam disaster that is reminiscent of California’s Oroville Dam crisis earlier this year.”

After flying over Puerto Rico on Sunday, CNN‘s Leyla Santiago said residents could be seen along the highways searching for a cellphone signal. With the island’s emergency responders still struggling to evacuate and rescue villagers, the Trump administration has been criticized for not doing enough.

In a tweet Sunday, Clinton said, “President Trump, Sec. Mattis, and DOD should send the Navy, including the USNS Comfort, to Puerto Rico now. These are American citizens.”

President Trump, Sec. Mattis, and DOD should send the Navy, including the USNS Comfort, to Puerto Rico now. These are American citizens. https://t.co/J2FVg4II0n

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 24, 2017

Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rosselló appeared on Morning Joe Tuesday morning to plead for more assistance for the island.

“This has been an unprecedented disaster, not only for Puerto Rico, but for all of the region…we need more help. We need more help with resources. We need more help with people being deployed so that we can get logistical support elsewhere.”

However, the White House has countered that airplanes and ships loaded with meals, water and generators have been arriving or are headed to Puerto Rico and other affected Caribbean islands. FEMA tweeted that more than 10,000 federal employees are in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin islands helping with search and rescue efforts and moving goods.

.@USCG continues hurricane #Maria response with 13 cutters, 10 aircraft, partners @fema @USNavy @prffa Read more https://t.co/HbIHmFe2f3 pic.twitter.com/R6ZBB13iuq

— USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) September 25, 2017

10k+ federal staff are on the ground in PR/USVI assisting with search & rescue, restoring power, & moving commodities. #Maria [