FEMA, Racing to Provide Virus Relief, Is Running Short on Front-Line Staff

By Christopher Flavelle and Zolan Kanno-Youngs
April 3, 2020

WASHINGTON — The Federal Emergency Management Agency, the office leading the federal government’s coronavirus response nationwide, is running short of employees who are trained in some of its most important front-line jobs, according to interviews with current and former officials.

At the same time, the agency has been forced to halt a major hiring initiative, and has closed training facilities to avoid spreading the infection.

The number of available personnel who are qualified to lead field operations has fallen to 19 from 44 in less than six weeks, and staff members have been pulled from responding to other disasters, but training centers in Maryland and Alabama have been shuttered until mid-May. In addition, an effort to recruit new employees called “Harness” is on hold, according to a senior administration official with direct knowledge of FEMA’s operations.

With wildfire season looming and hurricane season starting in less than two months, the shortfalls could complicate federal response to disasters nationwide.

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