After spending more than a billion dollars helping illegal aliens, FEMA doesn’t have the money to help Hurricane Helene victims.
Not only that, but the federal government has also been standing in the way of citizens helping other citizens. And now, the problem has gotten so bad that volunteers are putting the agency – and the White House – on blast.
At a glance:
- Volunteers criticize the federal response to Hurricane Helene, noting the lack of FEMA and military presence in hard-hit areas of North Carolina.
- Despite significant devastation, volunteer groups have stepped in, delivering over a million pounds of supplies.
- The federal government claims soldiers are being mobilized, but relief organizers remain frustrated with the slow response.
During a CNN interview on Sunday, volunteer pilots and relief organizers expressed their frustration over the federal government’s sluggish response to Hurricane Helene. They reported that, nearly two weeks after the Category 4 hurricane devastated parts of North Carolina, there is still no significant presence of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or the military in the worst-affected areas.
Hurricane Helene made landfall on Florida’s Big Bend region on September 26, before tearing through the Southeast. Western North Carolina was particularly ravaged, with roads washed away, homes destroyed, and millions left without power. So far, 227 people across six states have died due to the storm, making it the deadliest U.S. hurricane since Katrina in 2005.
Relief efforts have been led primarily by volunteer groups, including Operation Airdrop and Operation Helo. During the CNN segment, Doug Jackson, chairman of Operation Airdrop, described the scale of devastation, noting that many have lost everything. His group has flown 673 flights, delivering over 1.2 million pounds of supplies to remote locations.
Matt McSwain, co-founder of Operation Helo, which uses helicopters to reach isolated areas, echoed Jackson’s frustrations. “There’s still no FEMA, still no military, still no nothing,” McSwain said, adding that volunteers are tired but cannot stop because “if we go home, mama and papa won’t get their medicine, and they die.”
The federal response has faced mounting criticism, with some claiming that disaster relief is being underfunded due to resources being diverted to other programs, such as FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program (SSP), which assists with the migrant crisis. However, both FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security have denied that disaster relief funds are being redirected.
While FEMA has started distributing emergency aid, including $750 payments to affected households, many believe the efforts are insufficient. Vice President Kamala Harris announced last Wednesday that FEMA workers are going door-to-door to provide immediate relief, but volunteer organizers remain unsatisfied with the pace and scale of the federal response.
$750 solves nothing for anybody…
The Pentagon stated that nearly 1,000 soldiers have been mobilized to assist with disaster relief in North Carolina, working closely with FEMA. However, volunteers like McSwain insist that more immediate military assistance is needed to save lives.
As volunteers continue to fill the gap left by the government, the scrutiny over FEMA’s handling of the crisis—and its funding priorities—shows no signs of abating.