All posts tagged "Federal Emergency Management Agency"

As hurricane season quickly approaches, an internal report compiled by the Federal Emergency Management Agency claims the agency is "not ready" to adequately handle upcoming disasters.

CNN Correspondent Gabe Cohen called it "really startling stuff" that there's a "general uncertainty among top officials and all the way down to rank and file at FEMA about what the agency's mission is going to be once hurricane season starts, what storms they are going to deploy to, how much money is going to get out the door — they really don't know," Cohen said.

Cohen said "plummeting morale" also plays a factor in how well a disaster response progresses. ...

The new head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency greeted his staff Friday with an aggressive promise to "run right over" anyone who doesn't get with his program, according to a new report by Reuters.

"Obfuscation, delay, undermining. If...you think those tactics and techniques are going to help you, they will not, because I will run right over you," David Richardson said during an all-hands call. "Don't get in my way... I know all the tricks."

Richardson, a combat veteran who previously served with DHS's office for countering weapons of mass destruction, was appointed to replace acting FEMA chief Cameron Hamilton....

This story was originally published by Grist. Sign up for Grist's weekly newsletter here.

No matter where you live, extreme weather can hit your area, causing damage to homes, power outages, and dangerous or deadly conditions. If you’re on the coast, it may be a hurricane; in the Midwest or South, a tornado; in the West, wildfires; and as we’ve seen in recent years, anywhere can experience heat waves or flash flooding.

Living through a disaster and its aftermath can be both traumatic and chaotic, from the immediate losses of life and belongings to conflicting information around where to access aid. The weeks and months after may be even more difficult, as the attention on your community is gone but civic services and events have stalled or changed drastically. ...

By Victoria Cavaliere

Republicans will stage piecemeal budget votes over the weekend offering symbolic funding to additional public services, as Republicans and Democrats accused the other of deliberately dragging out the wider government shutdown into a second week.

By Lisa Maria Garza