WV and National Disaster & weather News - January 17, 2025

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West Virginia

Disaster Recovery

• FEMA gives over $1.3 million in disaster assistance to Mercer County residents so far after Hurricane Helene (WV Metro News)
• Princeton Disaster Recovery Center open on Jan. 20 (Bluefield Daily Telegraph, paywalled)

Weather

• Winter Storm Warning Issued for Parts of West Virginia, Snow Up to 6 Inches (Newsweek)
• West Virginia braces for more snowfall and frigid temperatures into next week (WV News)
• Winter Storm Warnings Continue in West Virginia: Hazardous Roads and Severe Cold Expected Through the Weekend (Country Herals)
• For detailed weather alerts, go to NWS Alerts for West Virginia

National News

California Wildfires

• Calmer winds, extended break from Santa Ana gusts to assist firefighting efforts in L.A. area (AccuWeather) , also see CNN
• Ash and other dangers mean LA area residents who fled fires a week ago won't be going home soon  (Associated Press)
• Wildfire survivors blocked from FEMA assistance due to fraud (AsAmNews)

Disaster Recovery

• Gov. Stein urges 6-month extension from FEMA to keep eligible NC residents in hotels (Ashville Citizen Times)
  
• FEMA officer breaks down process for placing trailers in East Tennessee (WVLT News 8)

FEMA

• Has FEMA's housing response improved since Katrina? (WLOS news 13)
• Former FEMA director to Congress: 'Give it back its independent agency status,' direct access to president – The Hill - Former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Michael Brown said that Congress should give the disaster relief agency back its “independent agency status," allowing it direct access to the president which would, in his view, improve its overall operation. It should not have been put homeland security in 2003.
• FEMA has been absorbed by huge bureaucracy of Dept. of Homeland Security (News Nation) - A former FEMA director says Congress should give the agency back its “independent agency status." Michael Brown made his remarks during an appearance on News Nation Thursday night. Brown served as the FEMA chief from 2003 to 2005 under former President Bush.  He went on to say, “The smartest thing they could do is to pull FEMA out, give it back its independent agency status, and give the director direct access to the president. If you don't have direct access to the president, like I had, it's not going to work."

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