President Trump visited the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters Friday and pledged a strong commitment to emergency preparation and response as the U.S. anticipates a busy hurricane season.
“We are very strong on Homeland Security, and we’re very strong in respect to FEMA,” Mr. Trump said at the agency’s National Response Coordination Center in Washington. “FEMA is something I’ve been very much involved in already.”
In the roughly six months in office, Mr. Trump has made FEMA assistance available several times by declaring disaster for events such as severe storms in Michigan, tornadoes in Nebraska and flooding in Missouri.
“We’ve already taken care of many of the situations that really needed emergency funds,” the president said. “We do it quickly, we do it effectively, we have an amazing team.”
Mr. Trump was touring FEMA headquarters and reviewing a briefing on the hurricane season, which meteorologists forecast will have an above average number of major hurricanes.
The Weather Company forecasts 15 named storms and eight hurricanes in the Atlantic basin, three of which will be major hurricanes.
The 2016 season was the most active since 2012, with 15 named storms, including 7 hurricanes and 4 major hurricanes.
Vice President Mike Pence accompanied the president on the tour.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
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