Trump's Dismantling of Federal Weather and Disaster Response Agencies Could Be Catastrophic Ahead of Hurricane Season
The Trump administration's continued dismantling of federal agencies that prepare and respond for disastre could be catastrophic as hurricane season starts.
Last week, forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) predicted an “above-average” 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, including at least six regular hurricanes and three major hurricanes. Meanwhile, researchers at Colorado State University said there’s a 56% chance a major hurricane will make landfall on the Caribbean and a 51% chance one will impact the eastern coast of the United States.
Hurricane season starts on June 1, beginning a period of low level anxiety that will permeate every single day for millions of people until November 30, when the season ends. This anxiety will only get worse when/if they end up suffering the devastating effects of a hurricane – which becomes more likely every year because of anthropogenic climate change. However, this year, the anxiety will likely be worse than previous years because the Trump administration's continued dismantling of the federal agencies that prepare and respond to a disaster makes it clear that help might not be coming after a hurricane.
There’s two agencies that are the most important during hurricane season, NOAA, alongside its sub-agencies like the National Weather Service (NWS) and the National Hurricane Center (NHC), and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The former forecasts and tracks extreme weather events, while the latter responds to disasters and provides disaster relief. Although these agencies — especially FEMA — are not perfect by any means, they are critical to protecting people’s lives during hurricane season. The Trump administration has been hard at work trying to dismantle them.
NOAA has decommissioned its Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters database, which has tracked hundreds of major hurricanes and other disasters across the US and the trillions in damages they have racked up. It’s one of several databases that have been decommissioned in recent months. More than 2,200 employees have been fired (then reinstated then fired again). Experts say a 20% vacancy rate is a “critical problem” for the agency, according to The Guardian.
