Eric Swalwell says NWS staff cuts prevented ‘better warning’ of floods
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) stated that staffing cuts to the National Weather Service (NWS) hindered the ability to provide earlier and better warnings ahead of the recent Texas floods, which have resulted in over 100 deaths. He echoed concerns raised by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who urged the Department of commerce’s acting inspector general to investigate whether the NWS layoffs in February caused delays in the flood response. swalwell emphasized the importance of ensuring adequate funding and staffing for government agencies responsible for public safety,criticizing efforts to undermine government workers like air traffic controllers and first responders.The Department of homeland Security (DHS), however, defended the NWS, stating that timely and precise forecasts and warnings were issued despite unprecedented rainfall. In response to the layoffs,the National Oceanic and Atmospheric administration (NOAA) recently rehired over 100 staff members for the NWS. Swalwell also called on former president Donald Trump to visit texas amid ongoing search and rescue efforts.
Eric Swalwell says NWS staff cuts prevented ‘earlier, better warning’ of flooding
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) said without staffing cuts to the National Weather Service, Texans would have received an “earlier, better warning” of the flood.
Swalwell echoed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-CA) in blaming the NWS layoffs in February for the slow response time to the floods, which killed at least 104 people as of Tuesday morning. Schumer requested that the Department of Commerce’s acting inspector general, Roderick Anderson, look into whether the layoffs affected the response time to the disaster.
“I do think, as lawmakers, we have a responsibility, though, to look at, ‘Did cuts affect the ability for folks on the ground, and at the camp, to have an earlier, better warning?’ But this is really going to – should we just attack [the] government for government‘s sake?” Swalwell said on CNN News Central on Tuesday.
“And for the last six months, we‘ve seen an effort to undermine the hard work of government workers, whether it‘s air traffic controllers who keep planes from colliding in the air, or FEMA first responders who go into the hardest-hit places in America,” Swalwell added.
The Department of Homeland Security denied allegations of inadequate warnings, saying the first one was issued by the NWS on July 3.
“The National Weather Service executed timely, precise forecasting and warnings, despite unprecedented rainfall overwhelming the region,” DHS said in a statement.
“The National Weather Service provided over 12 hours of advance notice via the Flood Watch and over 3 hours of lead time for Flash Flood Warnings, with escalated alerts as the storm intensified,” it added.
Swalwell said President Donald Trump should visit Texas as the search for missing people continues.
SCHUMER ASKS INSPECTOR GENERAL TO INVESTIGATE LINK BETWEEN NWS STAFF CUTS AND TEXAS FLOOD
“Our primary job as lawmakers is the safety of the public,” Swalwell said. “And if there‘s a possibility that cuts at that agency affected the safety of those girls, we should understand that, and we should do better as we make funding decisions in the future.”
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration added over 100 staff members to the NWS last month. These were rehires following layoffs to reduce NOAA’s workforce by approximately 10%.
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