from Your News:
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) failed to answer nearly half of the calls from survivors of Hurricanes Milton and Helene, raising questions about resource allocation.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
FEMA’s recent handling of emergency responses has come under scrutiny after a report revealed that the agency failed to answer approximately 47% of the 900,000 calls from survivors of Hurricanes Milton and Helene between October 14 and 20. The challenges arose shortly after Hurricane Milton struck Florida on October 9, leaving FEMA stretched thin in its response efforts.
TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/
The shortage of resources within FEMA has been linked to significant expenditures on migrant services and “equity” programs. Reports indicate that the agency spent nearly $1 billion on services for migrants, including shelter, food, transportation, and medical care, in addition to allocating $12 million for a grant aimed at enhancing equity in disaster responses.
According to Politico, the limited staff—around 500 available workers and 55 coordinating officers—contributed to the delays in answering calls. This marked a stark contrast to the 1,752 workers available during the peak of recovery efforts following Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, as shown in agency records.
The shortfall in FEMA’s response comes after a warning from Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on October 2, highlighting insufficient funds to support the agency through hurricane season, which runs until November 30.
Republican Florida Rep. Cory Mills voiced concerns in early October, criticizing the agency’s allocation of personnel and resources. “Let’s go and point out the obvious which is that FEMA had utilized a large majority of the personnel who should be here taking care of this to be replaced or repurposed for immigration resettlement when we need to be focusing on Americans whether it be in Maui, Palestine, Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, or Tennessee,” Mills said.
Over 250 lives were lost in Hurricanes Milton and Helene, with damages estimated at over $150 billion, according to CBS News. A former FEMA administrator told Politico, “They have very little capacity left to handle another multibillion-dollar event. The business model of emergency management in this country is in trouble. It’s overloaded.”
Maggie Jarry, an emergency management specialist at the Department of Health and Human Services, noted in an internal meeting that emergency management strategies are shifting from providing “the greatest good to the greatest amount of people” to focusing on “disaster equity.”
