They found 3 people frozen in tents last weekend. FEMA is an agency the DOGE should eliminate. Samaritan’s Purse did more for the people than they did
The last time we checked on North Carolina, it dealt with the after-effects of the deadliest tropical storm in the state’s history – Hurricane Helene.
Much has happened in the nation and the world since then, but I thought doing a status check would be worthwhile.
Recovery efforts are ongoing, but many challenges remain. As we approach Christmas, the state is grappling with how to fund $53 billion worth of repairs to recover from the storm damage.
North Carolina expects the federal government and other private sector funding to provide about $19.9 billion in financial assistance, leaving over $30 billion in damages still uncovered.
On Oct. 9, North Carolina lawmakers passed a $273 million relief bill and a subsequent $604 million package that N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law Oct. 25. Legislators promised these packages would represent only the first steps toward disaster relief for North Carolinians suffering from the effects of Helene.
But as the immediate impacts of the storm fade, the ongoing recovery efforts have been met with political and financial struggles.
…According to Pryor Gibson, now-interim chief operating officer, the [North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency (NCORR)] needs at least $40 million for each of the next three months to fund its projects. Without these funds, NCORR may not have the ability to continue supporting rebuilding efforts in still-recovering areas throughout the state.
Recently, a spokesperson for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, apologized for the agency failing to deliver dozens of travel trailers and manufactured homes to North Carolina residents displaced by Hurricane Helene. The “apology” came in response to Charlotte station WBTV grilling the representative about the lack of trailers being delivered to impacted families.
Our questions came after a FEMA spokesperson told WBTV the week of Thanksgiving that the agency would deliver a total of 103 temporary travel trailers and manufactured homes to families in North Carolina by the end of that week. At the time, FEMA had delivered 27 homes.
By Wednesday, Dec. 4, FEMA had still only delivered 46 homes — well short of the number of promised temporary homes.
WBTV learned that more than 500 families have been approved for a FEMA travel trailer or manufactured home in the wake of Helene. The agency’s slow deployment of the homes means hundreds of families are weathering the snow and freezing temperatures currently hitting the North Carolina mountains.
Despite that, a FEMA spokesperson initially struck an upbeat tune in an interview with WBTV on Nov. 26. The spokesperson then doubled down on a promise to deliver homes to the more than 500 families who have requested one.
“There could be 500 of these eventually given out?” a WBTV reporter asked.
“Here’s the beautiful part about it, the answer is ‘yes,’ and we’ve done even more. So we can handle it,” said FEMA Media Relations Specialist La-Tanga Hopes.
One suspects the agency’s response will be more robust after January 20th. Let’s hope the good people of North Carolina can hold out by relying on their neighbors.
As temperatures begin to drop for the season, residents told Bender that there are still people in need of a warm place to sleep.
Jenica Grooms owns a local auto body shop. But since Helene, she said she has shifted her focus to building temporary climate-controlled homes for people who are displaced.
“There has been a lack of temporary housing. There’s not a lot of places for people to go. Their hotel vouchers are running out. So our goal is to place these on people’s property.”
Roy Cooper is a liar and a terrible governor
North Carolina Straining to Fund Hurricane Relief Efforts Over Two Months After Helene
Delusions of Adequacy 