45 m. ago Trump defends response to deadly Texas flooding after touring disaster area – live updates

President and Texas governor praise handling of flooding that has killed at least 120 people; Trump calls reporter ‘evil’ for asking about lack of warningsThe US state department is firing more than 1,300 employees in line with the Trump administration’s reorganization plan initiated earlier this year. The department is sending layoff notices to 1,107 civil servants and 246 foreign service officers with domestic assignments in the US, a senior state department official told the Associated Press. Foreign service officers affected will be placed immediately on administrative leave for 120 days, after which they will formally lose their jobs, according to an internal notice obtained by the AP. For most affected civil servants, the separation period is 60 days, it said. “In connection with the departmental reorganization the department is streamlining domestic operations to focus on diplomatic priorities,” the notice says. “Headcount reductions have been carefully tailored to affect non...

Events

6 h. ago Trump praises Noem’s disaster response – because he saw her on TV

President praises Homeland Security Secretary as ‘right on the ball’ and doing a ‘great job’ despite intense criticism of FEMA over this week’s devastating flash flooding

Politics

7 h. ago FEMA is not shutting down but ‘rebranding’ to highlight local leaders’ roles in disaster response

In January, Trump floated the idea of minimizing FEMA if not getting rid of it as a whole – a position he has softened his stance on

Politics

27 h. ago Noem demanding to sign off on all FEMA expenditures over $100K and staff says it’s impacting emergency response

FEMA regularly uses millions of dollars in federal funding to assist states in disaster response and recovery

Politics

3 d. ago Texas floods: more than 100 people dead and at least 161 still missing

Texas governor Greg Abbott said many people staying in state’s Hill Country still unaccounted for as questions mount over official response to disasterRescue crews continued on Tuesday to comb through parts of the Texas Hill Country devastated by catastrophic flash flooding over the Fourth of July weekend, but with more than 100 dead and hope fading for survivors, efforts have increasingly turned to search and recovery.As of Tuesday afternoon, the death toll across the six affected counties surpassed 100. Most of the deaths were in Kerr county, where officials said 87 bodies had so far been recovered, including 56 adults and 30 children. Identification was pending for 19 adults and seven children with one additional person still unidentified, county sheriff Larry Leitha told a news conference. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Inflation 'disaster' looms if Iran's leaders sign off on response to US strikes

Shutting the vital Strait of Hormuz would be bad news for economies around the world, experts have warned after the measure was passed by Iran's parliament today

Events

3 w. ago BRIAN READE: 'Cruel disaster of Grenfell is warning over powerful dodging responsibility'

Grenfell is not just a burning scar on Britain’s conscience it’s another example of a country that lets the marginalised rot while the powerful shrug, says Brian Reade

Events

last month Trump's plan to begin 'phasing out' FEMA after hurricane season burdens states, experts warn

President Donald Trump’s plan to begin “phasing out” the federal agency that responds to disasters after the 2025 hurricane season is likely to put more responsibilities on states to provide services following increasingly frequent and expensive climate disasters, experts say

Events

last month Aid groups weigh how much more they can help if FEMA reduces its disaster response

With concern and confusion over how the federal government will respond to disasters this summer, aid groups are readying to expand the ways they help communities after hurricanes, fires and other storms

Events