A supervisor at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been fired after allegedly instructing staff to bypass homes supporting former President Donald Trump for Hurricane Milton relief. FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell announced the termination of supervisor Marn’i Washington in a series of posts on X, calling her directive “reprehensible” and a “clear violation of FEMA’s core values & principles to help people regardless of their political affiliation.”
“We take our mission to help everyone before, during and after disasters seriously. This employee has been terminated and we have referred the matter to the Office of Special Counsel. I will continue to do everything I can to make sure this never happens again,” Criswell added.
FEMA had previously told the Washington Examiner that it had “taken measures to remove the employee from their role and are investigating the matter to prevent this from happening ever again.”
The firing followed a whistleblower report revealing that Washington had instructed FEMA employees to avoid Florida homes displaying Trump signs or flags as they assessed damage from Hurricane Milton. The revelation sparked outrage, with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) both announcing investigations in response.
FEMA has faced criticism for its handling of disaster relief in the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, with President-elect Donald Trump also weighing in. However, FEMA has denied claims that its response to relief efforts in western North Carolina, which was heavily impacted by Hurricane Helene, has been slow.
