Exclusive: FEMA is “not ready” for hurricane season, internal agency review shows

Hurricane preparations at FEMA have slowed to a crawl. With hurricane season weeks away, a new assessment raises a number of red flags about how the agency would respond to a major disaster.

Hurricane preparations at Federal Emergency Management Agency have slowed to a crawl, and the disaster relief agency “is not ready” for the June 1 start to the season, according to an internal agency review obtained by CNN. Prepared at the direction of new acting Administrator David Richardson as part of a problem-solving exercise at FEMA, the document outlines the agency’s struggles in recent months and raises a number of red flags ahead of hurricane season, including a general uncertainty around its mission, lack of coordination with states and other federal agencies, low morale and new red tape that will likely slow responses. “As FEMA transforms to a smaller footprint, the intent for this hurricane season is not well understood,” the document states. “Thus FEMA is not ready.” President Donald Trump and his allies have criticized FEMA for months as ineffective and unnecessary. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose department oversees FEMA, has vowed to “eliminate” the agency. FEMA’s previous acting administrator, former Navy SEAL Cameron Hamilton, was fired last week after telling Congress he did not believe the agency should be eliminated. Richardson – a Department of Homeland Security official, former Marine combat veteran and martial-arts instructor – is now in charge and vowing to enforce President Trump’s agenda. In an all-hands meeting on his first day at FEMA, Richardson told agency staff that he will “run right over” anyone who tries to prevent him from carrying out the president’s mission. “FEMA is part of the Department of Homeland Security, and don’t forget that,” Richardson told agency staff. “I, and I alone, speak for FEMA. I am the president’s representative at FEMA, and I am here to carry out President Trump’s intent.”