FEMA waited 3 days to send rescue crews to Texas: report
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A search and recovery team in Comfort, Texas. Photo: Jim Vondruska/Getty Images
The Federal Emergency Management Agency did not deploy search and rescue teams to the Texas Hill Country until Monday, more than 72 hours after the deadly floods, per CNN.
The big picture: The July Fourth flooding, which left at least 120 people dead, offers a first look into how FEMA could handle catastrophes as President Trump has pushed to dismantle the agency and put emergency response in the hands of states.
How it works: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose department oversees FEMA, recently enacted a rule that requires her personal permission on spending over $100,000, a measure aimed at saving costs, per CNN. She has vigorously defended the response in Texas.
- Noem did not give the green light to deploy search and rescue teams to Texas until Monday, per the report.
By the numbers: By Monday night, there were 86 FEMA staffers in Texas, per CNN. That grew to 311 staffers by Tuesday night.
- FEMA officials told CNN that's a limited response.
State of play: Spokespeople for Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Division of Emergency Management declined to answer questions from Axios this week about how many FEMA staff are on the ground in Central Texas and what they are doing. They instead referred inquiries to the federal agency, which did not respond to questions.
- Abbott and state officials have praised President Trump and the federal response, which includes a major disaster declaration, signed Sunday by the president, that will help people in Kerr County with temporary housing and home repairs.
- FEMA worked with the state to open a Disaster Recovery Center on Thursday.
What they're saying: "FEMA is shifting from bloated, DC-centric dead weight to a lean, deployable disaster force that empowers state actors to provide relief for their citizens," per a Department of Homeland Security statement to Axios.
- "The old processes are being replaced because they failed Americans in real emergencies for decades."
- "DHS assets, including the U.S. Coast Guard, Border Patrol and FEMA personnel surged into unprecedented action alongside Texas first responders," Noem said Thursday in response to CNN's reporting.
- "President Trump, Secretary Noem and FEMA have been exceptional partners throughout the flood response," Abbott spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris tells Axios in an email.
Flashback: In October, under the Biden administration, FEMA said it deployed more than 1,000 FEMA staff in North Carolina in response to Hurricane Helene, with more than 250 search and rescue personnel.
- 175 people died as a direct result of Hurricane Helene.
Between the lines: Trump signed an executive order in January aimed at revamping FEMA and has spoken about "getting rid of" it altogether.
- When asked Sunday whether he still planned to phase out FEMA, Trump told reporters that it was "something we can talk about later, but right now, they're busy working, so we'll leave it at that."
- "I believe that all of our basic needs are being met, both through the federal and state response," Sgt. Jonathan Lamb of the Kerrville Police Department said Thursday at a news conference.
What's next: Democratic U.S. Reps. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and Julie Johnson (D-Texas) on Thursday requested a hearing to learn more about the federal government's response to the flooding.