Noem's vow to 'eliminate' FEMA raises alarms

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Source: msn/The Hill

11h


Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s vow to “eliminate” the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is raising the alarm from experts on disaster assistance, who say it could leave vulnerable communities at risk.

Noem this week said she was planning to eliminate the agency but did not elaborate on what that meant. Spokespeople for FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the disaster relief agency, did not respond to questions about whether FEMA’s services would be cut entirely or reshuffled elsewhere. President Trump has also said he would consider “getting rid of FEMA.”

Carrie Speranza, president of the USA Council of the International Association of Emergency Managers, told The Hill that if FEMA is shut down, she would be “fearful for this next hurricane season and what that means for survivors.” “You’re talking hundreds of thousands of people that will be impacted with very little resources to help,” Speranza said.

FEMA helps support communities before, during and after disasters. This includes helping localities with coordinating during a storm, conducting some search and rescue operations and providing funding to help communities rebuild. “The first time people see people in FEMA jackets is when we start going knocking on doors to make sure that we register people so they’re eligible for individual assistance,” said Pete Gaynor, who led FEMA under the last Trump administration. “But we have been there from the beginning.”

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/noem-s-vow-to-eliminate-fema-raises-alarms/ar-AA1BSeYP