AfterHurricane Heleneripped through North Carolina, Francesca got to work.
From the start, her work was more challenging than usual.
There was one day on the job in particular that has stuck with her.
FEMA Urban Search and Rescue work with Los Angeles County firefighters in Altadena in January.Barbara Davidson/The Washington Post/Getty Images
She starts basically just repeating every conspiracy theory that youve ever heard, Francesca says.
And then one man starts getting into my face.
In this case, though: That was impossible.
While Francesca is now home, distrust and accusations have followed her.
Othersacknowledgedthat FEMA employees were there but said it was only to block and confiscate aid.
Misinformation about FEMA funding being sent to support migrants caught on in particular.
I think, frankly, FEMA is not good, he said.
Later that day, he signed anexecutive orderto create a council to assess the agency.
As the agencys portfolio of responsibilities has grown over the decades, so has the scrutiny of its work.
FEMA, once a cabinet-level agency, was folded into the Department of Homeland security after the9/11 attacks.
There is a general consensus that FEMA needs to change, Speranza says.
The administration has yet to release any documentation of this alleged wrongdoing, instead citingmedia reportsand Elon Muskstweets.
DOGE has also reportedly accessed sensitive disaster survivor data,accordingto members of Congress.
Less than a week later, more than 200 additional FEMA employees were fired from departments across the agency.
All of this has cast doubt on the ongoing accessibility of FEMAs programs, including its funding.
This information is supposed to help inform which areas were selected for grant funding.
And then there was the government aid, including FEMA.
But Im saying theres a big gap between what FEMAs doing and whats needed.
You look at OK, what are the issues?
What are possible solutions?
How do we get input from the impacted people for those solutions and work from there?
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the idea is unpopular with members of Congress, particularly those whose districts often experience disasters.
And even some of Trumps strongest supporters in Congress have spoken against eliminating the agency.
FEMA cant go away, Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said, according toPolitico.
I think the first job of the federal government is to protect people and property.
None of this has happened on a timeline that state and local governments can adapt to, Miller says.
