FEMA is accused of failing to issue orders to employees, “seizing” relief supplies and delaying Starlink deliveries to Hurricane Helene victims

WASHINGTON – Outraged critics of the Federal Emergency Management Agency voiced allegations Friday that Hurricane Helene responders are sitting idle without orders – and that those who are working are “confiscating” aid supplies and the distribution of Starlink satellite internet devices is moving slowly.

The allegations were laid out by Elon Musk, CEO of Starlink operator SpaceX, and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), citing local whistleblowers, as the death toll topped 215 in six states, which making the storm the deadliest in America since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

“I just received this message from a SpaceX engineer helping on the ground in North Carolina. @FEMA is not only failing to adequately assist those in difficulty, but is actively blocking citizens who attempt to help!” Musk wrote on X.

The note read: “Hey Elon, updating here on the Asheville, NC website. We powered two major operating bases for helicopters to deliver goods into hands. We have deployed over 300 Starlinks [sic] and the flood is that it saved many lives. The big problem is that FEMA is actively blocking shipments, confiscating goods and services on site, and locking them away to claim they are their property.

“It is very real and frightening how much control they have taken to stop people from helping. We are currently blocked from delivering new Starlinks [sic] We'll come in until we get an escort from the fire department. [sic] but that may not be enough.”

Gaetz, meanwhile, wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas: “My office has been in contact with whistleblowers in numerous emergency management roles at the federal, state and local levels, and they all point to the same critical mismanagement issues.”

“FEMA has wasted taxpayer dollars, embezzled funds, and left other federal, state, and local responders on the ground without operational orders,” Gaetz wrote.

“As reported and further confirmed by my office, hundreds if not thousands of military personnel have been deployed to North Carolina by the Department of Defense and have been sitting idle, waiting for FEMA. We have confirmed that FEMA staff are in hotels waiting for orders around the clock.”

The Florida congressman further claimed that “FEMA aid was withheld before the disaster, exacerbating the emergency. It is also public that NGOs used FEMA funds to purchase airline tickets for migrants.”

“The aftermath of Hurricane Helene is a major disaster, and your waste and unpreparedness are leaving Americans in dire straits — with no access to food, water or medicine — and expecting help to come without it,” he added added.

Gaetz requested records, including “what portion of Disaster Relief Fund funds were spent on non-disaster relief programs, such as providing services to illegal immigrants or providing routine training to FEMA employees, authorized from general funds.”

FEMA and DHS did not immediately respond to the Post's request for comment.

Whistleblower allegations are not always entirely accurate and are sometimes based on the provision of incomplete information.

Musk and Gaetz both support former President Donald Trump's candidacy for the November 5 election.

Trump, who shared Musk's post on his Truth Social platform, criticized the response to the crisis by President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and their subordinates.

The allegations follow an outcry from Republicans over Mayorka's statement Wednesday that “FEMA does not have the resources to come through.” [hurricane] Season and what lies ahead” — even though the agency has allocated $640.9 million in FEMA-administered funds this year to help state and local governments deal with the influx of asylum seekers paroled en masse under Mayorkas The US was released, many of them illegally crossing the US-Mexico border.

The DHS chief dismissed the criticism Thursday, and a spokesman said the funds were earmarked by Congress for the refugee crisis.

It is unclear whether any of these funds may have been administratively diverted to hurricane relief, and it is not clear from Gaetz's letter whether the whistleblowers actually claimed that the disaster relief fund was used for migrants.