As Hurricane Dorian threatens the Florida coast, FEMA acting Administrator Pete Gaynor Thursday insisted that plans to divert $155 million from the agency's disaster relief fund to efforts at the nation's border will not impact relief efforts for this storm or from other storms in recent years.
"The $155 million, you know, it is a lot of money, but when you look at how much money we have for disasters this year, $27 billion, that money is about 1% of that," Gaynor told Fox News' "Fox and Friends." "There is a slight small risk that it will impact us; however, we have enough money for recovery from the 2017 and '18 disaster seasons and enough resources for this season. We are not worried about it here at FEMA."
Meanwhile, Gaynor warned people in Dorian's strike zone to prepare now for the hurricane, which is expected to make landfall as a Category 3 storm this weekend.
"If you look at the current forecast, the cone of uncertainty is as far as south as Key West and as far as north as Jacksonville, even into Georgia," said Gaynor. "If you are a Florida resident, south Georgia resident, now is the time to prepare to make sure no matter where it lands, you and your family are prepared."
He also encouraged listeners to download FEMA's app on their phones, as it will allow them to understand that the threats are to their local communities and to sign up for alerts.
"That really is the best thing you can do today," said Gaynor. "Don't waste time."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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