US EditionFEMA Tool Contract Renewal Delayed; $200K Deal Awaits DHS Approval
FEMA's tornado tracking contract expired in February and remains unrenewed due to DHS spending rules, leaving responders without critical data amid a deadly storm wave that killed 11 people.
- During recent storms, crews found FEMA's tornado-mapping tool was unavailable after its roughly $200,000 contract expired and renewal stalled in Homeland Security's approval process.
- During the partial DHS shutdown, officials say Kristi Noem directed FEMA to scale back to 'bare-minimum, life-saving operations' and imposed personal signoff for spending over $100,000, slowing approvals.
- By earlier this week, FEMA leaders and state officials pressed acting FEMA chief Karen Evans to approve access as storms loomed, while seven FEMA officials said some regional FEMA offices ordered staff to stand down.
- FEMA insiders warn Kristi Noem's policies slowed pre-positioning, left call centers understaffed, and may have affected rescue readiness as she plans to leave DHS at March's end; Sen. Markwayne Mullin is her replacement.
- A task force will submit final recommendations in the coming weeks amid the dispute between FEMA insiders and Democrats over DHS funding delays, sources say.
9 Articles
9 Articles
'Rescuers fly blind' after Midwest tornadoes as Noem’s DHS lets $200,000 contract lapse
FEMA insiders have been warning that outgoing Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s Noem’s policies are hampering operations and their ability to respond to disasters.The consequence of that may be lives lost. Delayed contract approvals has “slowed FEMA’s ability to pre-position crucial search-and-rescue teams, left call centers understaffed, and delayed the sharing of data with state partners,” CNN reports.When tornadoes hit t…
Search-and-rescue units respond without tornado-tracking tool after Noem’s team let contract lapse
As deadly tornadoes tore through the Midwest and Plains last weekend, state and local search-and-rescue crews rushed to the devastated areas to look for survivors. It wasn’t until the teams deployed that they realized they were operating without a critical tornado-tracking tool typically provided by FEMA.
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