FEMA director says Biden’s visit to Maui will provide hope, assurance

Deanne Criswell, the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), said Sunday she hopes President Biden’s upcoming visit to Maui will provide a “sense of hope and assurance,” after wildfires devastated parts of the island, killing over 100 people.

“He’s [Biden] also going to be able to talk with people and hear their stories and provide a sense of hope and assurance that the federal government is going to be with them as he has directed,” Criswell said in an interview with ABC’s “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl.

The White House announced last week Biden and first lady Jill Biden will travel to Maui on Monday to meet with first responders and tour damage from the wildfires. The president had faced some criticism over the last week for what some said was a lack of response to devastating wildfires.

“I think the biggest thing is he’s going to be able to see what I saw when I went to Maui last week and just really experience the complete and utter devastation that this town had experienced,” Criswell said.

The wildfires left at least 114 people dead as of Friday night with thousands of structures damaged or destroyed, Maui County officials said.

The historic Lahaina town took the brunt of the wildfires, where the flames ripped through an estimated 2,170 acres. Criswell said the search efforts are 78 percent complete there.

“And we continued to have our teams on the ground going through all of the structures that were lost as a result of the fire,” Criswell said, adding FEMA has already given over $8 million to impacted families.

The White House and FEMA approved a one-time payment of $700 per household for clothing, food or transportation, according to the Associated Press. The agency will also cover hotels and motels costs for survivors.

Earlier this month, the White House requested $12 billion in supplemental funds to ensure FEMA has the necessary money to respond to natural disasters as the agency is expected to have a “significant deficit” in its disaster relief fund.