FEMA official quits after Trump cuts hobble Texas flood response
The Federal Emergency Management Agency chief in charge of Urban Search and Rescue has quit the agency following a lackluster response to the recent flooding in Texas that killed more than 100 people.
Ken Pagurek resigned on Monday, reportedly in response to efforts by the Trump administration to hobble the agency, part of President Donald Trump’s ongoing policies against funding and properly staffing branches of the federal government. Previously, Pagurek worked for more than a decade at FEMA’s Urban Search and Rescue branch and led multiple teams responding to natural disasters.
CNN reported that “Pagurek told colleagues at FEMA that the delay was the tipping point that led to his voluntary departure after months of frustration with the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency, according to two sources familiar with his thinking.”
At least 135 people died in the Texas floods on July 4. Among the most tragic cases was the flooding at Camp Mystic, where at least 27 campers and counselors were killed. Included in the deaths were several children as young as 8 years old.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/7/22/2334636/-FEMA-official-quits-after-Trump-cuts-hobble-Texas-flood-response