Earl and Dean: Category “Much Ado About Nothing” Hurricanes

Matt Mayer / September 07, 2010

In the continuing (over)reaction to the failures of Hurricane Katrina five years ago, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) once again “leaned forward” in anticipation of a hurricane. For all of its activities in response to Hurricane Dean in 2009, FEMA spent north of $50 million for what amounted to a cloudy day in Houston, as Dean never got close to hitting Texas. Despite the fact that few expected Earl to actually hit the United States, FEMA issued disaster declarations to North Carolina and Massachusetts. Other than some larger waves, stronger winds, and heavier rain, nothing about the storm was of such “severity and magnitude” that the states couldn’t handle Earl on their own.

It is high time for governors to stiffen their spines and FEMA to get its finger off the declaration trigger. (more…)