Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Ana Cabrera Reports” that people who feel the federal government’s response to Hurricane Helene was insufficient were warned about increasing extreme weather events.
Cabrera said, “So you’re still in that search and rescue mode, it sounds like. Some residents into these impacted communities are telling us they feel like local and federal government was caught flat-footed. I want to get your reaction to some of what we’re hearing.
North Carolinian Ricky Brown said, “There you go that is your government. They don’t care about us. You know what I mean, they care more about the damn election and all that stuff than they care about these people that just lost everything.”
Cabrera said, “Mr. Secretary, how do you respond to that? Should the federal government have been better prepared to get to these isolated areas?”
Mayorkas said, “Well, our first priority is the well-being of people. That is absolutely critical and we are executing on that accordingly. We have been speaking about the fact that the frequency and gravity of extreme weather events have only been increasing. This Hurricane Helene is unprecedented in the amount of terrain it has devastated and we are responding accordingly. People should rest assure that we will be there for them.”
Follow Pam Key on X @pamkeyNEN