FEMA on Criticisms of Hawaii Relief: We’re ‘Not in Charge, the State Is’ — How They’re Doing ‘a Question for the State’

On Friday’s broadcast of CNN’s “The Lead,” FEMA spokesperson John Mills responded to criticism of the disaster response in Hawaii by stating that there is work that’s being done, but “FEMA’s not in charge, the state is in charge.” And stated that whether the state response is satisfactory is “a question for the state.”

Host Bianna Golodryga asked, “I know you say you’re working very hard, but many Maui residents are saying the government help is still lacking so many days after the fact. I want to read for you what one resident told The Washington Post, ‘We hear that we have lots of provisions, whether it be through FEMA or Red Cross, but everybody is on a different page. Emergency services and organizations that should be coordinated and organized, in the public eyes, have completely fallen through.’ What is your response to that assessment?”

Mills answered, “I was just meeting this morning with a community organization just down the street from here. That cultural center, which had a significant amount of damage, opened up a point of distribution with food, water, clothing, and other emergency supplies right after the fires struck, at the post office, and then they moved to another location. Maui County has opened a distribution center at a shopping center just across the street. FEMA is working closely with state emergency management and Maui County emergency management to make sure that those locations and shelters don’t run out of supplies. So, FEMA’s not in charge, the state is in charge. Maui County is executing the emergency management response, and FEMA is coordinating across the entire federal government, bringing all federal resources to bear, to help meet the needs that we hear about from the state.”

Golodryga then asked, “Are you satisfied thusfar with the state’s response?”

Mills responded, “I think that’s a question for the state. FEMA is doing everything we can to support this historic event, and it is incredibly difficult. We are working across multiple lines of effort, in close coordination with Maui County and the state. We’re talking about emergency services, mass care, critical infrastructure, and temporary housing. FEMA has activated a program called Transitional Sheltering Assistance…the FEMA hotel program. The state also has a hotel program. So, right now, this temporary housing is helping people move out of shelters and into hotels. This is actively happening right now, so that’s a first step. But we’ll also be working long-term with survivors and Maui County on longer-term challenges, and there are a lot of them, including taking necessary steps to begin to allow people to think about rebuilding on their land. We know that this area has incredible historic significance, and that’s why we are listening to local officials and listening to local residents about cultural sensitivities and working hand-in-hand with Maui County, embedding in their emergency operations center, so that we’re all working together as one big team.”

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