Tornados and Flooding Impact Midwest as Homeland Security Secretary Vows to Eliminate FEMA

The first week of April saw catastrophic flooding and a large-scale tornado outbreak impacting communities from Arkansas to Ohio. The storms, which killed at least eight people across multiple states, included more than 20 tornados. In Lake City, Arkansas, a powerful tornado destroyed multiple homes, sending debris nearly 5 miles into the air. Tornados also destroyed homes in western Tennessee and Kentucky. In addition to the tornado threat, more than a foot of rain is forecast to fall in the area over the first week in April, creating the potential for historic flooding. Water rescues occurred in flooded areas of Nashville, TN and Hopkinsville, KY. Residents of the region continue to brace for additional flooding as the storm system continues.   

These storms come a week after the Homeland Security Secretary vowed to “eliminate” FEMA, doubling down on earlier rhetoric from the White House saying that the Administration was considering “getting rid of FEMA.” FEMA is the primary federal agency that responds to disasters in coordination with state and local counterparts, working to support disaster preparedness, response. and recovery efforts. The agency works on a multitude of fronts, directing federal resources to assist in telecommunications repair, debris removal, and search and rescue operations while also providing funds to help communities repair and rebuild after disasters.   

Although the Secretary did not elaborate on their comments, news outlets reported that internal conversations showed the Administration was contemplating dramatically narrowing the focus of FEMA’s work, focusing only on immediate life-saving and emergency shelter operations, spinning off recovery functions to different agencies, and dismantling the agency’s grant programs focused around disaster preparedness and disaster resilience. The president of the International Association of Emergency Managers told state officials to prepare for “operating in a world without FEMA” – something only a few states would be able to do after a large disaster.   

The Administration is also considering whether to cancel a review council created by Executive Order in January. That council, which has not met yet, did publish a Request for Information in the Federal Register requesting feedback on experiences with FEMA disaster responses. NLIHC’s Disaster Housing Recovery Coalition will assist in coordinating responses to that request.