Cash-Strapped FEMA Diverts Funds To Combat Climate Misinformation

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Going into the 2024 hurricane season, FEMA was operating at 65% capacity. Years of rising demand for emergency services in the wake of COVID-19 and increasing extreme weather events left FEMA with just 11,400 employees of its 17,670-person target workforce – a 35% staffing shortfall.

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Now, in the aftermath of hurricanes Helene and Milton, FEMA is working tirelessly to hire much-needed emergency response workers throughout the hardest-hit parts of the country. The agency is offering signing bonuses from $500 to $1,500 for reservist positions for a limited time, and is openly advertising hundreds of temporary jobs throughout the Southeast.

But one unexpected outcome of the hurricanes is causing FEMA to deploy its resources to combat a different emergency: climate misinformation. In October, FEMA launched a web page to respond to rumors and misinformation surrounding Hurricane Helene disaster and cleanup efforts. Common falsehoods the agency has debunked include rumors that funding for FEMA was diverted to support illegal immigrants, that FEMA is detaining survivors in so-called “FEMA camps,” and that the FAA is restricting access to airspace needed for Helene rescue and recovery operations.

The NOAA has also created a similar website to debunk the large volume of misinformation that has circulated in the wake of the two major hurricanes. Some rumors responded to by NOAA include claims that the NOAA modifies the weather, that solar geoengineering made hurricanes Helene and Milton worse, and that the government creates and steers hurricanes into specific communities.