Report About Unanswered Calls at FEMA After Texas Floods

Source: MEDIAite

Jul 13th, 2025, 11:03 am


Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem fumed over a report that a massive number of phone calls to FEMA’s call center went unanswered in the immediate aftermath of the catastrophic flooding in Texas.

On Friday, The New York Times reported that “nearly two-thirds” of calls to FEMA’s disaster assistance line
were not answered “because the agency had fired hundreds of contractors at call centers.” The Times reported, citing a source and supporting documents, that FEMA fired hundreds of contractors on July 5.

“The next day, July 6, FEMA received 2,363 calls and answered 846, or roughly 35.8 percent, according to the documents,” Times reporter Maxine Joselow wrote. “And on Monday, July 7, the agency fielded 16,419 calls and answered 2,613, or around 15.9 percent, the documents show.”

The report stated that Noem, per a new DHS policy, is required to personally approve expenses over $100,000 and that she did not renew the contracts of the call center contractors until July 10. Sunday on Meet the Press, NBC’s Kristen Welker pressed Noem on the report. “Why did it take so long to extend those contracts?” Welker asked. Noem responded by flatly denying the report.

Read more: https://www.mediaite.com/media/news/just-false-kristi-noem-fumes-over-nyt-report-about-unanswered-calls-at-fema-after-texas-floods/