More than 5,000 federal employees are responding to the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, as Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warns the Federal Emergency Management Agency will run short on funding this disaster season.
Helene’s death toll is now over 200, making it the deadliest hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Katrina in 2005.
Frank Matranga, director of FEMA’s Individual Assistance Division, said federal agencies have sent more than 5,000 personnel to help with response and recovery efforts in the southeastern United States. That number includes more than 1,500 FEMA staff.
“I cannot thank enough all of the people across this country, across the federal family, across private and nonprofit sectors that are dedicating their time and energy to help the people in impacted areas and especially help the people of Western North Carolina,” Matranga said during a news conference today. “We know it’s a big job and we know there’s still work to do, but we are making steady progress.”
Matranga encouraged survivors to apply for federal assistance.
“This is a critical first step towards recovery and we want everyone to apply, even if they are not sure that they qualify,” he said. “Our applicant service specialists are available to help guide people and connect them through to the resources they need. In areas where power and cell networks are still down, our disaster survivor assistance teams are going door to door to help get families registered.”
During the peak of the storm, nearly 4.6 million people were without power. Ken Buell, deputy director for response and restoration in the Energy Department’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, said the number of customers without power dipped below 1 million Thursday morning.
“Restoration efforts are fully underway, being provided by over 50,000 personnel from 40 states working around the clock to assess damage and restore power,” Buell said. “But this restoration has been very, very complex due to the extreme nature of the damage in many, many areas.”
Some areas will require “a rebuild of the entire community before power can be restored,” he added.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden on Wednesday directed the Defense Department to deploy 1,000 active duty soldiers to bolster the delivery of aid to communities hit by Helene. More than 6,000 National Guard personnel from 12 states have also deployed to the region.
FEMA funding
Mayorkas told reporters on Wednesday that while FEMA has enough money to respond to Helene in the near term, he said the agency will need more funding before the end of the storm season on Nov. 30.
“We are meeting the immediate needs with the money that we have. We are expecting another hurricane hitting,” Mayorkas said. “FEMA does not have the funds to make it through the season.”
Ahead of Helene’s landfall last week, Mayorkas directed the activation of the “Surge Capacity Force,” a volunteer cadre of federal employees available to bolster FEMA’s ranks during disaster response efforts. Mayorkas said he was directing the activation “due to the anticipated frequency and severity of extreme weather events this season.”
Asked about FEMA funding on Thursday, Matranga said “money is an important factor, but the factor and the focus remains right now on getting that help to those individuals.”
“Obviously, as the federal government is spending funds and as FEMA is signing contracts, making grants, providing services to survivors and spending money, we’re keeping track of how much funding Congress has given us and how much we project to burn over the coming days,” Matranga said. “And I think as Secretary Mayorkas said yesterday, at a high level, we know that this is going to be a very excessive disaster. And we know that the needs right now are big and still not fully stabilized.”
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