David Richardson, the acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, after just six months in charge, following mounting criticism over his handling of the devastating July 4 floods in the Texas Hill Country.
Richardson, a former Marine Corps officer who was the U.S. Department of Homeland Security鈥檚 assistant secretary for countering weapons of mass destruction, had no background in emergency management when he was appointed in May. His leadership quickly came under fire in the aftermath of the Texas floods, which killed more than 130 people, including children at a summer camp along the Guadalupe River.
Lawmakers and local officials accused Richardson of failing to show urgency as the crisis unfolded. He didn鈥檛 travel to the region for days, later telling members of Congress during a committee hearing that he stayed in Washington, D.C., to 鈥�.鈥� He also acknowledged that he had been camping with his sons over the July 4 weekend.
Richardson insisted the agency鈥檚 response was 鈥渁 model for how to respond to a disaster,鈥� but some lawmakers sharply disagreed.
鈥淭his wasn鈥檛 just incompetence, it wasn鈥檛 just indifference 鈥� it was both, and that deadly combination likely cost lives,鈥� said Democratic Rep. Greg Stanton of Arizona.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed the departure in a brief statement, thanking Richardson for his service and saying he would return to the private sector. FEMA Chief of Staff Karen Evans will take his place starting Dec. 1, according to DHS.
Richardson鈥檚 departure comes as the FEMA Review Council prepares to deliver a sweeping set of recommendations to the White House on how to overhaul the agency. The council, formed earlier this year, was charged with assessing FEMA鈥檚 performance and proposing major structural changes 鈥� in line with President Donald Trump鈥檚 push to fundamentally remake the agency.
According to , Trump is weighing a plan to move FEMA鈥檚 headquarters to Texas and tap Nim Kidd, head of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, to lead the agency.
