Trump embarks on first presidential trip for look at unprecedented damage

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WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump will visit two disaster areas on Friday to see the unprecedented damage firsthand in a region of North Carolina that flooded during Hurricane Helene and another ravaged by wildfires in California. On the trip, he'll hear about local needs to combat the fires that have continued to break out around Southern California and to efforts to rebuild in both states.

Requests for disaster aid could become political because the Republican president criticized the Democratic Biden administration’s response to these disasters before he took office. North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein and California Gov. Gavin Newsom are both Democrats.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has said federal aid for wildfires could come with strings attached. He criticized what he called mismanagement of water resources and forests.

Stein plans to meet Trump at the Asheville airport Friday morning.

“Gov. Stein is looking forward to talking to President Trump about what western North Carolina needs to recover,” press secretary Morgan Hopkins told Paste BN.

North Carolina battered with 104 dead, $60B damage by Hurricane Helene

Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina in late September, killing 104 people, causing more than $60 billion in damage and leaving thousands without housing. The storm swept across five states with destruction from historic rainfall, flooding, power outages and 140 mph winds.

Western North Carolina bore the brunt, with vast swaths of cities such as Asheville underwater. Residents were trapped in their homes with no lights or food and few functioning roads for rescue workers to get to them and help. Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers called it "an unimaginable and horrific disaster" in a post on Facebook.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told Paste BN that Trump and Vice President JD Vance set a high priority for the recovery and rebuilding of the state by repeatedly checking with him during the transition. Tillis called Trump’s visit "welcome news" and said he’ll be working “to ensure that every available federal resource is deployed and that red tape preventing families from accessing housing is eliminated.”

“Despite our continued pressure, FEMA made little progress in providing direct housing solutions for those most affected by Helene,” Tillis said.

Trump vows FEMA overhaul

Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity on Wednesday that he plans to overhaul FEMA.

"FEMA is going to be a whole big discussion very shortly, because I'd rather see the states take care of their own problems," Trump said.

FEMA's Disaster Relief Fund was depleted in the fall after Hurricane Helene and other major disasters. But Biden signed a bill in December that added $29 billion to the fund.

FEMA said as of Monday the agency paid for hotel rooms for short-term shelter for nearly 13,000 North Carolina people in the wake of the hurricane. FEMA has provided more than $316 million in cash grants to state residents and the Small Business Administration has provided $213 million in low-interest loans.

“We understand the great need survivors have at the time and this program will last as long as necessary,” said Brett Howard, FEMA’s coordinating officer.Part of the problem was the flooding knocked out so many roads and facilities such as water treatment that it was tough to start repairing the damage. Stein signed five executive orders on his first day in office Jan. 2 to speed up temporary housing for 12,000 residents who still needed it and the repair of 8,000 private roads and bridges that needed to be repaired or replaced.

Wildfires continue to devastate California as Trump visits

At least 28 people had died in the Southern California wildfires as of Thursday. The fires have burned a combined 50,000 acres and destroyed 16,000 homes, according to the state Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Much of the region remained under a red-flag warning for extreme fire risk due to strong, dry winds.

Powerful Santa Ana winds were expected to test the fire crews battling the Hughes fire and other major blazes – Palisades and Eaton – into Friday. Winds of 50 mph were forecast with gusts reaching 65 mph and humidity levels dropping below 10%.

"Dangerous fire weather conditions will persist through Friday as fuels remain extremely dry... and ready to burn," the National Weather Service said in an advisory. "Any fire that starts can grow fast and out of control."

A smaller blaze of about 40 acres, the Sepulveda Fire, continued to burn Thursday along Interstate 405 just below the Getty Museum, which holds numerous art treasures. The brush fire briefly caused the heavily traveled highway to be closed and some nearby residents to be evacuated.

When Trump arrives, the disaster will be far from over. The Hughes fire erupted Wednesday in an area 45 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles and scorched more than 8,000 acres that day. The fire prompted mandatory evacuation orders to 31,000 people near Castaic Lake and evacuation warnings for another 23,000 people.

Disaster relief could become political as Trump blasts Newsom

Trump criticized the emergency response in both North Carolina and California, which both have Democratic governors, during his inauguration speech Monday. Trump, who visited the Tarheel State in October, said Tuesday he would return there first because the state "has been abandoned by the Democrats.”

“Our country can no longer deliver basic services in times of emergency, as recently shown by the wonderful people of North Carolina, who’ve been treated so badly,” Trump said Monday. “Or more recently, Los Angeles, where we are watching fires still tragically burn from weeks ago without even a token of defense.”

Trump has criticized Newsom for years over water management and the state's preparedness to fight fires.

"One of the best and most beautiful parts of the United States of America is burning down to the ground," Trump posted on Truth Social on Jan. 8. "It’s ashes, and Gavin Newscum should resign. This is all his fault!!!"

In 2019, Trump blasted Newsom for continually reaching out to Washington for aid to combat the fires. 

"No more," Trump said on Twitter in November 2019. "Get your act together Governor. You don’t see close to the level of burn in other states."

Newsom responded on Twitter that Trump didn't believe in climate change, so "you are excused from this conversation." Newsom's office then issued a lengthy statement detailing the state's efforts at fire prevention.

Newsom contends fire response has been robust

Newsom responded on X to Trump's criticism Monday with four pictures of firefighters battling blazes and the phrase: “Without a token of defense.”

Newsom said Tuesday he had deployed more than 16,000 people including firefighters, National Guard members and highway patrol officers. The response includes more than 2,000 pieces of firefighting equipment including nearly 1,500 engines, more than 80 planes, more than 200 bulldozers and more than 200 water tenders.

Former President Joe Biden agreed to fund 100% with federal money California’s fire management and debris removal for six months rather than the customary 75%.

Debate brewing in Congress over wildfire aid

Johnson, the House speaker, has said lawmakers could place conditions on federal aid to California amid catastrophic wildfires because of what he called issues with local leadership.

"Obviously there's been water resources management, forest management mistakes, all sorts of problems,” Johnson told reporters Monday. “And it does come down to leadership and it appears to us that state and local leaders were derelict in their duty in many respects. So that's something that has to be factored in. I think there should probably be conditions on that aid."

Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, the second-ranking Republican in the Senate, blamed “policies of the liberal administration” for the large scale of fires.

“I expect there will be strings attached to money that is ultimately approved and it has to do with being ready the next time because this was a gross failure this time,” Barrasso told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday.

But Democrats warned against making disaster aid a partisan issue.

"This is a Mistake," Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., said in a post on X. “If you start this, it will never end.”

Climate change, policy decisions blamed for fires

California's wildfires are growing larger and more ferocious, with disasters including fires droughts, floods and hurricanes becoming more intense because of a combination of climate change and human activities, experts told Paste BN.

“If there’s one point to make clear, it’s the worsening wildfires are not natural disasters, said Jennifer Marlon, a senior research scientist at the Yale School of Environment. “Earthquakes are natural disasters."

Trump has criticized California's water management. He signed an order Monday that directed federal agencies “to route more water" from across the state toward Los Angeles rather than trying to protect a nearly extinct tiny fish species in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

"I don't think we should give California anything until they let water flow," Trump told Fox News.

Newsom dismissed Trump's assertion that fire hydrants ran dry around Los Angeles due to water conservation in the northern part of the state.

“If you don’t believe in science, believe your own damn eyes,” Newsom said in a statement Monday with pictures of wildfires

Moody’s RMS, which does climate and natural disaster risk modeling, estimated the losses in the Los Angeles wildfires by Friday at $20 billion to $30 billion. Firas Saleh, director of North American wildfires for Moody’s, a global research and analysis firm, said in a Thursday statement that wind conditions, plants and low humidity all contributed to the rapid expansion of the Hughes fire.

Fires shine spotlight on power lines

Power lines are again drawing the spotlight as a potential cause of the horrific blazes. One solution – burying power lines in areas with bone-dry vegetation – would be costly.

The Maui fire that killed 102 people in 2023 was caused by the "re-energization" of broken power lines during high winds that showered sparks into dense, dry vegetation, according to local and federal authorities.

California’s deadliest fire, the 2018 Camp fire, started after a single worn-out metal hook on a PG&E transmission tower failed, allowing a live line to hit a transmission tower. Hot sparks and molten metal fell into drought-stressed trees and grasses, according to fire investigators.

"Most wildfires are not started by utility equipment, but they have started some of the really big ones," said UC Berkeley economist Severin Borenstein, who specializes in energy and public policy.

Contributing: Dinah Voyles Pulver, Reuters