David Richardson, the acting director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), told staff in an all-hands meeting on Monday that he was unaware that hurricane season had started, sources familiar with the meeting told ABC News.
Hurricane season starts on June 1 and goes through November 30.
It is unclear if Richardson was joking or not, but a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson says he was.
The FEMA building is seen, May 15, 2025 in Washington.
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“Despite meanspirited attempts to falsely frame a joke as policy, there is no uncertainty about what FEMA will be doing this Hurricane Season,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “FEMA is laser focused on disaster response, and protecting the American people.”
The meeting was held on Monday morning after Richardson had said that he’d update staff on what the plan was to tackle hurricane season. Sources in the meeting told ABC News that he is sticking with the old plan, not to get in the way of the FEMA advisory council.
The advisory council was established by President Donald Trump and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.
-ABC News’ Luke Barr
