Hundreds fired at weather agency as US faces storm warnings

WASHINGTON – The Trump administration fired hundreds of employees at the top US agency overseeing weather prediction and climate research, raising concerns about the nation’s preparedness amid wildfire and tornado warnings.

The cuts affect the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which includes the National Weather Service (NWS) and a vast observational system that supplies free data to commercial forecasters. The move is part of broad effort by the administration to shrink the size of the federal government.

At least 880 people were terminated, Senator Maria Cantwell, the ranking member on the Senate Committee that oversees the agency, said in a statement on Feb 27. Hundreds more are expected to be let go at NOAA as soon as Feb 28, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the information is private.

The firings are taking place just as critical fire weather conditions are expected to develop this weekend in parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. A potentially severe round of thunderstorms, hail and even tornadoes is forecast for the lower Mississippi River Valley next week, said the US Storm Prediction Centre, which is part of the NWS.

NOAA employed about 12,000 prior to the cuts, including more than 6,700 scientists and engineers and a uniformed service that operates NOAA’s fleet of research ships and planes.

Mr Rick Spinrad, an oceanographer who led NOAA during the Biden administration, said the agency had been working to fill vacant positions after a wave of retirements in 2024.

Losing workers “will cause a lot of damage and potentially loss of lives, impact on property and economic development,” he said. “The mission will suffer. The agency was already understaffed, so if you are cutting into it, you are already cutting into bone.”

NWS spokesperson Susan Buchanan declined to confirm the exact size and scope of the job cuts, citing “long-standing practice” against discussing personnel or management matters at the agency. 

“NOAA remains dedicated to its mission, providing timely information, research and resources that serve the American public and ensure our nation’s environmental and economic resilience,” Ms Buchanan said in an email on Feb 27. “We continue to provide weather information, forecasts and warnings pursuant to our public safety mission.”

Almost 21 million people will have at least a 15 per cent chance of experiencing severe weather on March 4, including those in Dallas, St Louis and Nashville. In 2024, severe storms – including an outbreak of 110 tornadoes across the central US – killed 51 people and caused about US$46.8 billion (S$63.1 billion) in damage, according to the National Centres for Environmental Information. 

Conservative critics have called for NOAA to be broken up and its responsibilities and assets distributed among other federal departments. But Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who oversees the agency, testified at his confirmation hearing in January that he believes NOAA should remain intact.

Mr Neil Jacobs, the scientist who has been nominated as NOAA’s next administrator, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. He was acting NOAA administrator during President Donald Trump’s first term, and was cited for misconduct related to the “Sharpiegate” hurricane forecasting controversy. Bloomberg