ReutersThe US Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) has reportedly suspended a number of staff who criticised the agency’s direction under US President Donald Trump.
The staff are said to have been among those who recently signed an open letter that castigated Trump officials over cuts and alleged interference, warning that another “national catastrophe” akin to Hurricane Katrina was possible.
More than 20 employees were told on Tuesday that they had been put on administrative leave, according to sources who spoke to the BBC’s US partner, CBS News. The BBC has asked Fema for comment.
There has been renewed scrutiny of US disaster readiness after recent deadly flooding in Texas.
Trump set about drastically overhauling the disaster-management agency soon after returning to office in January, when he mooted the idea of “maybe getting rid of Fema” altogether.
He has characterised the organisation as inefficient and suggested that state-level officials were better placed to respond to natural disasters.
Reports suggest that hundreds of employees – representing about a third of Fema’s workforce – have left their jobs since the start of the year for various reasons.
Of the 191 Fema employees who signed Monday’s open letter criticising the agency’s direction under Trump, the majority remained anonymous.
The letter reflected on the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, pointing out that the storm had claimed more than 1,800 lives and had highlighted the need for competent American disaster-management leadership.
It took the Trump administration to task for cuts to the agency’s funding and workforce, the failure to appoint a permanent agency boss and other issues including the perceived “censorship of climate science”.
Addressing the Federal Emergency Management Agency Review Council, the letter made demands including a defence against “interference” from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and an end to “politically motivated firings”.
The aim was to “to prevent not only another national catastrophe like Hurricane Katrina, but the effective dissolution of Fema itself”, the document said.
In response, a Fema official defended the agency’s work and reforms under Trump – saying it was committed to delivering for the American people and had previously been “bogged down by red tape” and other inefficiencies. DHS is yet to respond.
Some of those who lent their names to the letter of protest received emails on Tuesday saying they had been put on administrative leave “effective immediately, and continuing until further notice”, according to copies of the emails seen by CBS.
The group would begin a “non-duty status” and would continue to receive pay and benefits, the emails said. The emails did not give a reason for the move, but reassured that it was “not a disciplinary action and is not intended to be punitive”.
The New York Times reported that a higher number of about 30 employees had received the email.
The Washington Post reported that at least two of the suspended Fema staff had been involved in the federal response to July’s deadly flooding in Texas.
Scores of people died in the disaster – including 27 attendees of a girls’ summer camp. Questioned by lawmakers about accusations that some rescue work had been delayed, Fema’s acting administrator described the response as a “model” one.
Among the other natural disasters with which US disaster officials have contended this year were rampant wildfires in Los Angeles.
The row over the Fema suspensions comes with the North Atlantic hurricane season under way and with expectations that the agency will be busier than usual because of warmer sea temperatures – made more likely by climate change.
