The Trump administration has rapidly addressed disaster relief in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene, resolving 80% of outstanding cases in just five days—far surpassing the sluggish response under President Joe Biden’s FEMA. Now, President Donald Trump is taking aim at FEMA’s long history of failures, signaling a possible move to dismantle the agency altogether.

During a visit to Western North Carolina, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem criticized FEMA’s track record, pointing out its slow response to natural disasters stretching back decades, including its failures after Hurricane Katrina. “FEMA can often be slow and confusing with a lot of paperwork. I heard that over and over again today. And we’re going to fix that,” Noem said.

Noem emphasized that Trump has already taken major steps to help struggling North Carolinians. “President Trump came in and visited this community, and in less than 20 days secured over $54 million for families in need,” she said in a post on X. Since his visit, 2,600 families who had been waiting for assistance have been registered for aid.

FEMA’s failures under Biden have drawn sharp criticism from Trump, who pointed out that, even after 116 days, many North Carolina residents were still without essentials like drinking water and hot showers. “At one point, half of the emergency calls to FEMA went unanswered. That’s real bad,” Trump said, slamming the agency’s response.

FEMA’s performance has been under scrutiny not just in North Carolina but also in California, where its response to wildfires has been criticized. Trump has suggested that the agency’s inefficiency may be beyond repair, saying he is considering shutting it down entirely. “You’ve heard him make comments that he might even want to end it and have it be a process where the federal government sends block grants or sends the dollars to the state or to the local communities, and they decide how it’s spent,” Noem said.

As part of this potential overhaul, Trump has signed an executive order to review FEMA’s operations. While no official decision has been made, Noem made it clear that major changes are coming. “I’ll promise you one thing—President Trump has committed, and I’m committed with him, to bringing FEMA into the 21st century,” she said.

With Trump’s administration moving faster than FEMA ever has, the future of the agency remains uncertain. Whether it is restructured or eliminated altogether, Trump has made clear that the inefficiencies and delays of the past will no longer be tolerated.