Officials within the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) who were tasked with responding to massive flooding in central Texas this past week say that some of their lifesaving efforts were delayed due to cost-saving rules imposed by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem.
Noem, whose department oversees FEMA’s work, issued a new agency rule this year requiring all contracts and grants costing over $100,000 to be personally approved by her. As floodwaters were rising in Texas, Noem failed to respond to such requests over the weekend, taking four days to approve the spending that could have saved lives.
As of Wednesday evening, 120 people in Texas have been killed by the massive floods, with 173 people still missing.
FEMA officials were prompt to respond to the devastating natural disaster as it was happening. But according to four officials within the agency who spoke to CNN on the matter, the new rule directly impeded their efforts.
“We were operating under a clear set of guidance: lean forward, be prepared, anticipate what the state needs, and be ready to deliver it. That is not as clear of an intent for us at the moment,” one of the sources told the network.
A spokesperson for FEMA defending the policy said Noem’s changes to the agency were mostly positive.
“The old processes are being replaced because they failed Americans in real emergencies for decades,” that spokesperson said.
But some crucial tools to assist in rescuing people were left unused for days, the anonymous FEMA officials said. For example, Urban Search and Rescue Crews, typically dispatched immediately when a disaster occurs, were unable to move into position within the state when floodwaters started to rise rapidly on Friday. Aerial imagery to assist in rescue efforts was also delayed, the officials said.
Although these requests were made on Friday, Noem did not approve them until Monday, several days after the flooding had started and wrought most of its destruction.
Noem — who frequently shares social media posts of her dressing in the same garb as other DHS agents — did take the time to post on her Instagram account on Sunday a few potential options for her official portrait as a former governor of South Dakota, The Daily Beast reported, asking her followers which image was their favorite.
On the same day Noem had asked her followers to weigh in on her portrait, President Donald Trump deflected questions from reporters on his administration’s response to the Texas floods, including questions on whether cuts to the National Weather Service (NWS) had affected efforts to warn residents.
Trump ignored a reporter who had started to ask a question about those cuts, claiming he couldn’t hear her, despite having no difficulty hearing reporters moments before. He also attempted to place partial blame for the floodwaters on his predecessor, claiming without evidence that “the water situation” was a “Biden setup.”
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