President Donald Trump’s administration has taken control of disaster recovery efforts in North Carolina, making rapid progress where FEMA had fallen behind. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stated that in just five days, 80% of open cases were resolved, an effort that far outpaced FEMA’s performance under President Joe Biden.
During his visit to North Carolina, Trump did not hold back in criticizing FEMA’s handling of the disaster. He pointed out that months after Hurricane Helene, many residents were still lacking basic necessities. “Biden did a bad job,” he said, highlighting FEMA’s failure to answer emergency calls and provide timely assistance.
Noem said the administration is working to ensure that families who had been left waiting finally receive the support they need. She noted that Trump had secured over $54 million in aid and helped register 2,600 families for assistance, many of whom had not received any support under FEMA.
FEMA’s slow response in North Carolina is not the first time the agency has faced backlash. Its failures stretch back to Hurricane Katrina, and more recently, its handling of wildfire relief in California has come under scrutiny. Trump has questioned whether FEMA should continue operating in its current form and has ordered a review of its structure.
Noem explained that Trump is considering shifting disaster relief responsibilities to state and local governments, giving them control over how funds are allocated rather than relying on FEMA’s bureaucracy. “You’ve heard him make comments that he might even want to end it and have it be a process where the federal government sends block grants or sends the dollars to the state or to the local communities, and they decide how it’s spent,” she said.
While FEMA reports that 153,000 households have received some level of assistance, the Trump administration has emphasized that their priority is speeding up the process. With an executive order now in place to evaluate FEMA’s future, major changes to disaster relief management in the U.S. may be coming soon.
