WASHINGTON — Hurricane Milton is ready to take on Florida Wednesday evening — the second hurricane to hit in two weeks — and the federal agency charged with responding to disasters is once again positioning supplies and personnel where they are needed and coordinating with state and local officials.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency did that confronted with rampant disinformation about the response to Hurricane Helene, which hit Florida on September 26 before moving north and leaving a trail of destruction in six states.
Critics say the organization isn’t doing enough to help survivors false rumors In the run-up to the presidential election, claims circulating that people who accept federal aid money could have their land confiscated or that FEMA is holding up trucks full of supplies.
Meanwhile, there is also a lot of confusion about what the agency does does and doesn’t do when disaster strikes.
Now, with Milton about to perish a life-threatening storm surge In the Tampa Bay area, many people are wondering whether they should see FEMA workers on the ground right away and what impact the agency will have if they don’t.
Here’s a closer look at what the agency does during emergencies:
State or tribal governments can contact us request federal assistance. But the disaster must exceed their ability to respond, meaning not all disasters ultimately receive federal assistance. The president approves disaster declarations.
Once a state of emergency is declared – as in the case of Milton and Helene – it can unleash different types of assistance from FEMA. A big part of what FEMA does is spend money in the form of cash immediate aftermath of a disaster and for years to come.
This could include help persons affected by disasterssuch as $750 payments to pay for their immediate needs – such as medicine or diapers – after a storm or earthquake hits. It could also mean extra money to rent an apartment because their home was destroyed or to pay for a storage unit.
In the after Hurricane HeleneFEMA has already distributed more than $286 million. But the agency has received complaints in the past that the process is too bureaucratic.
In Hard hit Asheville, North CarolinaMayor Esther Manheimer said Wednesday that local officials had heard about people whose claims had been denied by FEMA and were working with the agency to resolve the problem.
“We will be meeting later today with our FEMA representatives here in Asheville and Buncombe County to discuss the number of denials and secure a resolution and make one happen as quickly as possible,” she said.
Another large portion of FEMA’s disaster assistance goes to public assistance. This is money to reimburse local governments for things like overtime for police or firefighters, or to remove the mountains of rubble left behind after storms.
The agency also provides longer-term funding to rebuild public infrastructure such as schools, roads or libraries damaged by earthquakes or floods.
No. Experts and the agency emphasize that FEMA is not assuming control over Milton’s response. Much of this goes to the state and the affected communities.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, who led New York City’s Division of Emergency Management before taking the top job at the federal agency, said FEMA’s role is to support the work of local emergency managers.
“We don’t come in and take over any response. I have been a local emergency manager. I know the steps they are taking now to prepare for this storm,” she said during a briefing Wednesday as she headed from North Carolina to Florida.
“Our role is to amplify the incredible work that our local emergency managers, our first responders and our state partners do every day … and ensure they have the resources they need,” Criswell said.
Craig Fugate, who was FEMA administrator during the Obama administration and before that was Florida’s emergency management director, said FEMA is really playing a supporting role in the initial response.
“Disaster response belongs to the states, not the federal government,” Fugate said. In such emergencies, it is usually governors who are in charge, he said.
The agency is sending water, tarpaulin, food and personnel. For an event like a hurricane — when there is time to prepare — the agency coordinates with state and local officials on where to take supplies before the storm hits.
For Milton, the agency says it has five staging bases where it has pre-stationed food and water, including 20 million meals and 40 million gallons of water.
FEMA has also sent search and rescue teams and is helping bring in expertise throughout the federal government as needed. For example, there are two temporary force teams from the US Army Corps of Engineers in Florida to assist with the Milton response. Other supplies have also been brought in, such as Ministry of Defense high-water vehicles, ambulances and helicopters.
Before Milton makes landfall, the agency said it already has 1,000 responders on the ground. Many of them worked there during previous disasters and are now working to help Milton.
When asked about complaints that FEMA had not reached some areas of North Carolina affected by Helene, Criswell said Wednesday that just because residents don’t see anyone in a FEMA shirt doesn’t mean the organization doesn’t support them.
For example, she said, much of the water and food provided through the National Guard and other agencies comes from FEMA’s stockpiles.
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AP reporter Sarah Brumfield contributed from Washington.