Oct 09 Political disputes are hurting Puerto Rico relief, FEMA chief says By Luis Alonso Lugo, Associated Press He did not identify which individual officials he blamed, but the mayor in San Juan has drawn the ire of President Donald Trump for her criticism about how quickly aid is reaching people on the island. Continue reading
Oct 02 5 important stories you may have missed By Joshua Barajas, Jennifer Hijazi, Ilayda Kocak With the rush of news about the deadly shooting in Las Vegas, and the continuing recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, these five stories may have slipped under your radar. Continue reading
Sep 28 Trump, Ryan clear the way for government aid to Puerto Rico By Catherine Lucey and Laurie Kellman, Associated Press Trump waived federal restrictions on foreign ships delivering cargo. And House Speaker Paul Ryan said the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster relief account will get a $6.7 billion boost by the end of the week. Continue reading
Sep 14 Trump to visit Floridians after Hurricane Irma By Catherine Lucey, Associated Press For President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, the visit Thursday to Naples and Fort Myers on Florida's southwestern coast offered the chance to see how people were coping and how the Federal Emergency Management Agency has responded. Continue reading
Sep 13 Harvey losses could top $11 billion, FEMA official says By Michael Biesecker, Associated Press That would likely put Harvey as the second costliest storm in the history of the federal insurance program, said Roy E. Wright, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's deputy associate administrator for insurance and mitigation. Continue reading
Sep 08 What you need to know about Hurricane Irma By Erica R. Hendry, Michael D. Regan In a news briefing Friday, Florida Gov. Rick Scott called it “a catastrophic storm” like “our state has never seen.”… Continue reading
Sep 06 House approves $7.9 billion bill for Harvey relief By Andrew Taylor, Associated Press The 419-3 vote sent the aid package — likely the first of several — to the Senate in hopes of sending the bill to President Donald Trump before dwindling federal disaster reserves run out at the end of this week. Continue reading
Sep 03 Watch 2:43 In west Houston, evacuees eager to start repairs By PBS News Hour More than 39,000 people are still in shelters after Hurricane Harvey brought extensive flooding to Gulf Coast cities and the Federal Emergency Management Agency has received 507,000 requests for disaster aid. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said that the cost of… Continue watching
Sep 01 Trump's hiring, budget raises questions about U.S. Harvey help By Laurie Kellman, Associated Press Much of FEMA's widely-praised response is the product of laws and procedures that grew under Trump's predecessors after the government's botched response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Continue reading
Aug 30 House GOP plans to cut disaster aid fund likely won't survive Harvey By Andrew Taylor and Alan Fram, Associated Press The disaster relief cut was proposed to finance President Trump's border wall well before Harvey. The politically bad optics are sure to lead lawmakers to do an about face, though that would create a money crunch in homeland security accounts. Continue reading