FEMA cuts emergency training under Trump as hurricane season looms

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Reuters

May 11, 2025 6:08 AM EDT Updated 36 min ago


WASHINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. federal disaster agency FEMA has sharply reduced training for state and local emergency managers ahead of the start of the hurricane season on June 1, according to current and former officials, memos seen by Reuters, and three sources familiar with the situation. The training cutbacks could leave storm-prone communities less prepared to handle the often devastating aftermath of hurricanes, the sources and some of the current and former officials warned.

Leading forecasters predict a busier-than-average Atlantic hurricane season this year, with 17 named tropical storms, including nine hurricanes. If state directors and local emergency managers are not briefed on the federal government's latest tools and resources, it will impact their ability to prepare for and warn communities of impending storms, said Deanne Criswell, who headed FEMA during President Joe Biden's administration.

Some 2,000 FEMA employees - or about a third of full-time staff - have been fired or accepted incentives to quit since President Donald Trump took office in January and declared that the agency should be abolished and its functions handed over to the states.

Last week, Trump fired FEMA's acting chief, Cameron Hamilton, a day after Hamilton told lawmakers that the agency should be preserved. Hamilton's successor, David Richardson, told FEMA employees on Friday that he would "run right over" any staff opposed to his implementation of Trump's vision for a smaller agency.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/fema-cuts-emergency-training-hurricane-season-looms-2025-05-11/

[Lovie777]

1. Ya think the governors would be protesting defunding of FEMA......................

especially states where they have extreme weather damages and lost of life.

[dutch777]

3. Given Trump's denial of emergency declaration for AR tornados, red state governors have to be worried.

As with everything Trump, wants states to pick up for themselves what FEMA has done traditionally but doesn't coordinate a plan to give states time to organize, fund and do that before hacking FEMA to shreds. Doubtful some states could even do it as their funding situation is already precarious when you look at states like LA and MS especially. But I suppose it is okay, because only the poor and middle class will suffer.

[BumRushDaShow]

4. Huckleberry has been whining about getting some more disaster $$ in her state of AR

and it has fallen on deaf ears.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders fights Trump admin's disaster aid denial to ruby-red Arkansas

The Trump ally urged him to reverse his administration's decision to deny federal aid to her state after deadly storms last month.


April 29, 2025, 3:42 PM EDT

By Ja'han Jones

(snip)

Sanders, who served as White House press secretary during Trump's first term, filed an appeal of the Trump administration’s aid denial April 18. In the appeal, she noted that the storms killed at least three people and injured 32 others, and detailed significant property loss and damage. And Arkansas’ congressional delegation, which is entirely Republican, co-signed a letter to Trump urging him to "reconsider the denial."

(snip)

Link to tweet

Earlier this year, Sanders praised the Trump administration's efforts to slash funding for federal agencies, including FEMA, and called Elon Musk's cost-cutting operation a "gamechanger." But those efforts are now impacting storm victims in her state.

Last week, Sanders said during an interview, "I've talked to the president. I've talked to [Department of Homeland Security] Secretary Noem. We want to make sure that people are taken care of, and we're going to continue to work to ensure that happens."

It seems Arkansans in need are being forced to wait with bated breath to see whether Trump — someone dangerously ignorant about climate change and severe weather events — and his administration believe their experiences warrant recovery funds.

XITTER TEXT

Senator John Boozman
@JohnBoozman
·
Follow
Compounding natural disasters in multiple communities last month will make recovery more difficult for the state and local governments in Arkansas.

Our congressional delegation supports Gov. @SarahHuckabee Sanders’ request for reconsideration of a major disaster declaration.
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4:54 PM · Apr 21, 2025

They should get the same response as blue states as succinctly uttered by one Gene Wilder -

[travelingthrulife]

5. Look at those rotten Senators and Reps carving out special rules for Sister Sarah.

[BoRaGard]

2. "Ha ha. Hurricane suckers and losers. Ha ha." - G.O.P., inc

[mountain grammy]

6. That's why he's defunding NOAA

Can't be hurricaines if they're not in the forcast when there's no forcast.

There! problem solved! Promises made, promises kept.