FEMA administrator on disinformation after Hurricane Helene

This week, 60 Minutes reported on the impact of Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina. 

Correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi and a 60 Minutes team visited Green Mountain, a town that was devastated by flooding after Helene caused the North Toe River to overflow.

In an interview with 60 Minutes Overtime, Alfonsi recalled the shock of seeing what Helene had done.

"You could see the beautiful, sweet little North Carolina town, just kind of sitting precariously on the edge of the road," Alfonsi told Overtime. 

Alfonsi met a Green Mountain resident, Jane Whitson Peterson. Peterson, her husband and her 96-year-old mother were trapped on the second floor of their family-run general store as the water rushed in, completely flooding the first floor.

Peterson told Alfonsi that she saw an entire house, that had been moved off its foundation, float past them. 

"Something I never want to see again. And I hope and pray nobody has to," she said. 

It's been over three weeks since Helene hit North Carolina and the recovery effort has a long way to go. 

The North Carolina Department of Transportation reports that over 500 roads are still closed, and more than 100 bridges need to be replaced. 

Jeff Howell is the emergency management coordinator for Yancey County, an area hit hard by Helene. Howell told Alfonsi it will be a long road to recovery. 

"It's going to be years before this county is fully recovered from it," he said. 

FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, has been working with state and local officials and the Department of Defense to coordinate the delivery of resources and supplies, like food, water and medicine.

In North Carolina, the agency is distributing disaster relief funds to victims of Helene through door-to-door outreach and local processing centers. 

But the region is also dealing with a storm of disinformation about the federal government's response. 

Howell told Alfonsi he has heard false conspiracy theories from residents, both in person and on social media, that FEMA was seizing people's property and that the federal government geoengineered the storm. 

Howell said the conspiracy theories are a distraction and impact those working on the ground trying to get people help. 

"It takes their focus away from what they're supposed to be doing, when they're having to debunk this sort of stuff," he said. 

Alfonsi interviewed Robert Samaan, a FEMA regional administrator who is overseeing the agency's response in North Carolina. He said "mistrust" of the federal government can prevent those who have been affected from getting the help they need. 

"Any time that people are out there trying to sow mistrust in the government, it can impact people's recovery," said Samaan. "They may be more hesitant to call and register for assistance, which is disappointing. And it's sad that people would do that."

One of the false claims is that FEMA provides $750 and nothing more to help victims of Hurricane Helene. 

"The $750 is part of our Serious Needs Assistance program. That's just to get them started with their initial recovery," Samaan explained. 

"We're going to work with them to get them additional funds for other things that they might need, [like] home repairs [and] things of that nature."

FEMA created a "Hurricane Rumor Response" page on their website that debunks the false information circulating on social media.

One of the rumors is that the agency's disaster relief funds were diverted to help migrants. FEMA addressed this on their website writing: "This is false…No money is being diverted from disaster response needs. FEMA's disaster response efforts and individual assistance is funded through the Disaster Relief Fund, which is a dedicated fund for disaster efforts. Disaster Relief Fund money has not been diverted to other, non-disaster related efforts."

Local officials have been fighting the disinformation as well. On October 3rd, the Rutherford Emergency Management Response Team refuted a conspiracy theory on Facebook that federal, state, and local government officials planned to seize the town of Chimney Rock.

The Rutherford County Sheriff's Office said they received a call on October 12th that an individual had made a comment about possibly harming FEMA employees. He was arrested and charged with going armed to the terror of the public.

FEMA temporarily paused its door-to-door outreach operations as a safety precaution for its workers. It resumed those operations on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024.

The following day, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper addressed those who may be spreading false information. 

"If you're participating in spreading this stuff, stop it. Whatever your aim is, the people you are really hurting are those in western North Carolina who need help."

Gov. Cooper said he directed the North Carolina's Department of Public Safety to coordinate law enforcement assistance for FEMA workers and other responders who need it. 

FEMA has opened more than 40 processing centers and distributed more than $100 million in disaster assistance to North Carolina victims. About 350 field officers remain on the ground providing aid to those who need it. 

Robert Samaan told Sharyn Alfonsi that FEMA is transitioning into getting infrastructure back up and running, and that the recovery process in North Carolina will take a while. 

"We're going to take it one step at a time," he told Alfonsi. 

"At the end of the day, we're all in it together. The local governments, the citizens, the state government, and FEMA."

The video above was produced by Will Croxton. It was edited by Sarah Shafer Prediger.