WASHINGTON — Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell said Tuesday that rumors and disinformation will be a regular part of the response to natural disasters in the future and rebuked those who seek political gain from spreading false information.
The level and type of disinformation being spread through FEMA as states in the Southeast struggle to recover from Hurricane Helene is, according to Criswell, the worst she has ever seen, after rumors of previous natural disasters “steady.” “have increased”.
False information about FEMA and its response to natural disasters has been spread through numerous channels, including social media, podcasts, and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s numerous comments and posts. Criswell did not name any politicians or anyone else while speaking to reporters.
Meanwhile, it’s Hurricane Milton races toward Florida’s Gulf Coastt and is expected to make landfall by Wednesday evening. Meteorologists warn of a storm could be one of the worst in Florida. Thousands of people were evacuated on Tuesday.
Criswell said she is concerned that the lies about various aspects of FEMA’s response to Hurricane Helene could have a chilling effect on whether people harmed by natural disasters seek assistance. It could also potentially endanger first responders on scene.
“It’s just really demoralizing for them. It hurts their morale and they left their families to be able to come here and help people,” she said of first responders and FEMA workers.
Although no one has physically attacked FEMA employees or other emergency responders so far, Criswell said, she and others are closely monitoring the misinformation and also closely watching how people in areas affected by natural disasters respond to it.
FEMA’s collaboration with local law enforcement can aid monitor safety issues, although rumors and disinformation can make things worse, she said.
“If it creates so much fear that my staff doesn’t want to go into the field, we won’t be able to help people,” Criswell said, adding that she had concerns about “the safety of our people who are in the field.” neighborhoods that may or may not have full trust in the government.”
“So we’re watching this closely to make sure we’re keeping them safe as well,” she said.
Helene brought devastation to several states, including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee And Virginia. More than 230 deaths were reported.
Storm victims
The rumors and wrong information about FEMA’s response and recovery efforts are “creating fear among some” people trying to navigate the hurricane recovery process, Criswell said.
“I’m worried that they won’t apply for assistance, which means I won’t be able to get them the essentials they need,” Criswell said. “And that’s the biggest impact that I see as a result of this constant narrative that’s more about politics than it is about actually helping people.”
She said the current situation is worse than ever.
“We have always set up rumor control sites because there have always been people out there trying to take advantage of those who have lost so much by creating false websites and trying to get their information and people and defrauded the federal government,” Criswell said. “So this is nothing new, but the level of rhetoric continues to rise.”
After the Maui wildfires in August 2023, federal officials worked with local officials to convince Hawaiians that the rumors and disinformation that spread after that disaster were untrue.
Some of them the disinformation about the wildfires on Maui came from “foreign state actors,” Criswell said.
FEMA was eventually able to get federal aid to everyone who needed it, but it took much longer than it otherwise would have, she said.
The first aid that people in hard-hit areas often receive from FEMA is a $750 payment intended to cover their immediate needs, such as water, food, clothing and medicine.
There has been significant misinformation regarding this amount. Criswell clarified in the call that this is FEMA’s first installment and that more assistance will be provided to people affected by natural disasters as the recovery process progresses.
“We know they have an immediate need in the first few days, and it’s just a jump start to help them replace some of that,” Criswell said.
As FEMA collects more information about property damage and other issues related to natural disasters, people will likely receive additional assistance for home repairs as well as the cost of a hotel stay if their home is severely damaged.
FEMA then continues to work with people who have longer-term needs, such as rental assistance, if needed.
FEMA has Set up a website to dispel rumors and disinformation about its response and recovery efforts.
It says that in most cases, the money FEMA gives to disaster survivors does not have to be repaid, and notes that the agency “cannot seize your property or land.”
“There are some rarer situations where you may have to pay FEMA back if you receive duplicate insurance benefits or a grant from another source. For example, if you have insurance that covers your temporary housing costs, but you ask FEMA to advance you some money so you can pay those costs while your insurance is delayed, you must pay that money back to FEMA after you receive your insurance Insurance processing.”
The website also states that no disaster relief funds were redirected to address border security or immigration issues.
“That is wrong. No money will be diverted for disaster relief. FEMA’s disaster relief efforts and individual assistance are funded through the Disaster Relief Fund, which is a special fund for disaster efforts. Disaster Relief Fund money was not redirected to other, non-disaster-related efforts.”
Questions about financing
FEMA has sufficient funding to cover response and recovery efforts from the more than 100 open natural disasters across the country, but will need additional funding from Congress in the coming months.
“I have sufficient resources to continue to support response efforts for these two events and then continue to support recovery efforts from all storms across the country,” Criswell said, referring to Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
“However, I won’t be able to support this recovery for long without supplementation,” she added. “And we anticipate that we will need additional funding in December and January, otherwise I will have to move back to what we call immediate needs funding, where we pause commitments in our recovery projects to ensure that I am on a Event how… can react.” we see today.”
The first step for Congress to approve emergency funding for FEMA or another federal agency is usually for the Office of Management and Budget to send a request for additional spending to lawmakers on behalf of the White House.
The legislature may then choose to write legislation that appropriates some, all, or more funds than requested. You can also choose not to fund the emergency application, although this seems unlikely this time.
Currently, FEMA has a disaster relief fund of about $20 billion, she said.
Individuals needing assistance from FEMA should call 1-800-621-3362 and register https://www.disasterassistance.gov/ or fill out an application through the FEMA app.
