Latest news with #Maue
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Firings at US weather and oceans agency risk lives and economy, former agency heads warn
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal weather and oceans agency touches people's daily lives in unnoticed ways, so massive firings there will likely cause needless deaths and a big hit to America's economy, according to the people who ran it. The first round of firings started Thursday at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a government agency that monitors the oceans, the atmosphere where storms roam and space, and puts out hundreds of 'products' daily. Those products generally save lives and money, experts say. NOAA's 301 billion weather forecasts every year reach 96% of American households. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. The firings are 'going to affect safety of flight, safety of shipping, safety of everyday Americans,' Admiral Tim Gallaudet told The Associated Press Friday. President Donald Trump appointed Gallaudet as acting NOAA chief during his last administration. 'Lives are at risk for sure.' Former NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad agreed. 'We're getting into prime tornado time. We're getting into planting season for the agricultural season for the bread belt," Spinrad said. "It's going to affect safety. It's going to affect the economy.' That's because 'NOAA sort of gets forgotten, until it's very important,' said private meteorologist Ryan Maue, a conservative and a NOAA chief scientist under Trump. 'This throws sand in the gears' of an agency that is understaffed but doing 'a Herculean job,' Maue said. Elon Musk has repeatedly defended federal workforce cuts by his Department of Government Efficiency as 'common sense.' 'The people voted for major government reform, and that's what the people are going to get,' Musk said from the Oval Office this month. 'That's what democracy is all about.' What does NOAA do? The agency creates daily weather forecasts from 122 local offices, issuing warnings for deadly tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, wildfires and floods. Disaster and local officials use those to advise the public on how to avoid danger. Farmers use seasonal outlooks for crop advice. Pilots use aviation forecasts. Forecasts from private weather apps on phones, on television and elsewhere are based on NOAA satellites, data and forecasts. 'That's an amazing undertaking to monitor that. You can't count on TV meteorologists to fill this gap and you can't count on private meteorology," Maue said. "You can't count on your weather app to call you up and alert you'' to tornadoes, severe thunderstorms and floods in your area. What is the potential impact of the dismissals? In the west, dozens of NOAA meteorologists provide firefighting crews with up-to-the-minute forecasts on wind and other shifting conditions that affect fires and could mean life or death, said Elbert 'Joe' Friday, a former director of NOAA's National Weather Service. They also are key in avalanche warnings. In the water, ships use the agency's weather forecasts and mapping of water channels for safety, while NOAA manages fisheries worth hundreds of billions of dollars and stunning ocean sanctuaries. Gallaudet, who was a Navy rear admiral, said NOAA guidance on weather and shipping channels will be so hurt by the firings that America could see more accidents like when a massive container ship ran into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in 2024. It was NOAA's quick work that enabled the reopening of Baltimore's economically critical port after a only a couple months, Spinrad said. In Alaska, the city of Nome wants to create a deep water port, but it needs NOAA to do a channel survey first, he said. NOAA provides the science expertise in the response to major oil spills in coastal areas, including 2010's BP Deepwater Horizon, Spinrad said. In space, NOAA forecasts help prevent satellites — including those belonging to Musk's SpaceX — from colliding. The agency also watches for solar flares that can knock out parts of the electrical grid and hurt air traffic communications, officials said. NOAA owns or operates 18 satellites in orbit. 'Three years ago, SpaceX lost 40 satellites due to their ignorance of space weather implications and upper atmosphere density impacts. They immediately came to NOAA and said, 'hey, help us out'," Spinrad said, calling it 'an object lesson there for Elon Musk himself' on the agency's value. The National Weather Service is worth $102 billion a year to the U.S. economy, according to a 2022 study by the American Meteorological Society and economist Jeffrey Lazo. Before the current Trump administration, NOAA had a $6.7 billion budget, including nearly $1.4 billion for the National Weather Service, one of six sub-agencies. How many NOAA workers were dismissed? NOAA officials would not reveal how many people were fired Thursday or are being let go, citing privacy. Current and past NOAA leaders and employees have given various estimates on job cuts, ranging from 580 to 1,200. Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said the latest figure he has is 650 terminations. Jane Lubchenco, another former NOAA chief, said the firings "are a national disaster and a colossal waste of money." These are not high-paying jobs, but it's work being done by people who love it, so cutting NOAA is like going after coins in the couch, Maue said. 'These are people who just live and breathe this work. These are the kind of people who come in on a day off because there's a big weather event and they want to help out,' said Holy Cross University environmental sciences professor Keith Seitter, the former director of the American Meteorological Society. 'People don't go into meteorology because they want to get rich.' Seitter said there will 'be things that fall through the cracks where they shouldn't,' because of the dismissals, warning 'those things lead to situations that could be deadly'' Gallaudet, appointed by Trump, called the cuts 'self-defeating,' saying 'I could personally never work for Trump again. I did support some of the conservative policies. I still do, but he personally as a leader, he's despicable.' ___ Becky Bohrer contributed from Juneau, Alaska, and Brittany Peterson contributed from Denver. ___ Follow Seth Borenstein on X at @borenbears ___ Read more of AP's climate coverage at ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
The Independent
28-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Firings at US weather and oceans agency risk lives and economy, former agency heads warn
The federal weather and oceans agency touches people's daily lives in unnoticed ways, so massive firings there will likely cause needless deaths and a big hit to America's economy, according to the people who ran it. The first round of firings started Thursday at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a government agency that monitors the oceans, the atmosphere where storms roam and space, and puts out hundreds of 'products' daily. Those products generally save lives and money, experts say. NOAA's 301 billion weather forecasts every year reach 96% of American households. The firings are 'going to affect safety of flight, safety of shipping, safety of everyday Americans,' Admiral Tim Gallaudet told The Associated Press Friday. President Donald Trump appointed Gallaudet as acting NOAA chief during his last administration. 'Lives are at risk for sure.' Former NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad agreed. 'We're getting into prime tornado time. We're getting into planting season for the agricultural season for the bread belt," Spinrad said. "It's going to affect safety. It's going to affect the economy.' That's because 'NOAA sort of gets forgotten, until it's very important,' said private meteorologist Ryan Maue, a conservative and a NOAA chief scientist under Trump. 'This throws sand in the gears' of an agency that is understaffed but doing 'a Herculean job,' Maue said. Elon Musk has repeatedly defended federal workforce cuts by his Department of Government Efficiency as 'common sense.' 'The people voted for major government reform, and that's what the people are going to get,' Musk said from the Oval Office this month. 'That's what democracy is all about.' What does NOAA do? The agency creates daily weather forecasts from 122 local offices, issuing warnings for deadly tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, wildfires and floods. Disaster and local officials use those to advise the public on how to avoid danger. Farmers use seasonal outlooks for crop advice. Pilots use aviation forecasts. Forecasts from private weather apps on phones, on television and elsewhere are based on NOAA satellites, data and forecasts. 'That's an amazing undertaking to monitor that. You can't count on TV meteorologists to fill this gap and you can't count on private meteorology," Maue said. "You can't count on your weather app to call you up and alert you'' to tornadoes, severe thunderstorms and floods in your area. What is the potential impact of the dismissals? In the west, dozens of NOAA meteorologists provide firefighting crews with up-to-the-minute forecasts on wind and other shifting conditions that affect fires and could mean life or death, said Elbert 'Joe' Friday, a former director of NOAA's National Weather Service. They also are key in avalanche warnings. In the water, ships use the agency's weather forecasts and mapping of water channels for safety, while NOAA manages fisheries worth hundreds of billions of dollars and stunning ocean sanctuaries. Gallaudet, who was a Navy rear admiral, said NOAA guidance on weather and shipping channels will be so hurt by the firings that America could see more accidents like when a massive container ship ran into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in 2024. It was NOAA's quick work that enabled the reopening of Baltimore's economically critical port after a only a couple months, Spinrad said. In Alaska, the city of Nome wants to create a deep water port, but it needs NOAA to do a channel survey first, he said. NOAA provides the science expertise in the response to major oil spills in coastal areas, including 2010's BP Deepwater Horizon, Spinrad said. In space, NOAA forecasts help prevent satellites — including those belonging to Musk's SpaceX — from colliding. The agency also watches for solar flares that can knock out parts of the electrical grid and hurt air traffic communications, officials said. NOAA owns or operates 18 satellites in orbit. 'Three years ago, SpaceX lost 40 satellites due to their ignorance of space weather implications and upper atmosphere density impacts. They immediately came to NOAA and said, 'hey, help us out'," Spinrad said, calling it 'an object lesson there for Elon Musk himself' on the agency's value. The National Weather Service is worth $102 billion a year to the U.S. economy, according to a 2022 study by the American Meteorological Society and economist Jeffrey Lazo. Before the current Trump administration, NOAA had a $6.7 billion budget, including nearly $1.4 billion for the National Weather Service, one of six sub-agencies. How many NOAA workers were dismissed? NOAA officials would not reveal how many people were fired Thursday or are being let go, citing privacy. Current and past NOAA leaders and employees have given various estimates on job cuts, ranging from 580 to 1,200. Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said the latest figure he has is 650 terminations. Jane Lubchenco, another former NOAA chief, said the firings "are a national disaster and a colossal waste of money." These are not high-paying jobs, but it's work being done by people who love it, so cutting NOAA is like going after coins in the couch, Maue said. 'These are people who just live and breathe this work. These are the kind of people who come in on a day off because there's a big weather event and they want to help out,' said Holy Cross University environmental sciences professor Keith Seitter, the former director of the American Meteorological Society. 'People don't go into meteorology because they want to get rich.' Seitter said there will 'be things that fall through the cracks where they shouldn't,' because of the dismissals, warning 'those things lead to situations that could be deadly'' Gallaudet, appointed by Trump, called the cuts 'self-defeating,' saying 'I could personally never work for Trump again. I did support some of the conservative policies. I still do, but he personally as a leader, he's despicable.' ___ ___ ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Associated Press
28-02-2025
- Climate
- Associated Press
Firings at US weather and oceans agency risk lives and economy, former agency heads warn
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal weather and oceans agency touches people's daily lives in unnoticed ways, so massive firings there will likely cause needless deaths and a big hit to America's economy, according to the people who ran it. The first round of firings started Thursday at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a government agency that monitors the oceans, the atmosphere where storms roam and space, and puts out hundreds of 'products' daily. Those products generally save lives and money, experts say. NOAA's 301 billion weather forecasts every year reach 96% of American households. The firings are 'going to affect safety of flight, safety of shipping, safety of everyday Americans,' Admiral Tim Gallaudet told The Associated Press Friday. President Donald Trump appointed Gallaudet as acting NOAA chief during his last administration. 'Lives are at risk for sure.' Former NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad agreed. 'We're getting into prime tornado time. We're getting into planting season for the agricultural season for the bread belt,' Spinrad said. 'It's going to affect safety. It's going to affect the economy.' That's because 'NOAA sort of gets forgotten, until it's very important,' said private meteorologist Ryan Maue, a conservative and a NOAA chief scientist under Trump. 'This throws sand in the gears' of an agency that is understaffed but doing 'a Herculean job,' Maue said. Elon Musk has repeatedly defended federal workforce cuts by his Department of Government Efficiency as 'common sense.' 'The people voted for major government reform, and that's what the people are going to get,' Musk said from the Oval Office this month. 'That's what democracy is all about.' What does NOAA do? The agency creates daily weather forecasts from 122 local offices, issuing warnings for deadly tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, wildfires and floods. Disaster and local officials use those to advise the public on how to avoid danger. Farmers use seasonal outlooks for crop advice. Pilots use aviation forecasts. Forecasts from private weather apps on phones, on television and elsewhere are based on NOAA satellites, data and forecasts. 'That's an amazing undertaking to monitor that. You can't count on TV meteorologists to fill this gap and you can't count on private meteorology,' Maue said. 'You can't count on your weather app to call you up and alert you'' to tornadoes, severe thunderstorms and floods in your area. What is the potential impact of the dismissals? In the west, dozens of NOAA meteorologists provide firefighting crews with up-to-the-minute forecasts on wind and other shifting conditions that affect fires and could mean life or death, said Elbert 'Joe' Friday, a former director of NOAA's National Weather Service. They also are key in avalanche warnings. In the water, ships use the agency's weather forecasts and mapping of water channels for safety, while NOAA manages fisheries worth hundreds of billions of dollars and stunning ocean sanctuaries. Gallaudet, who was a Navy rear admiral, said NOAA guidance on weather and shipping channels will be so hurt by the firings that America could see more accidents like when a massive container ship ran into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in 2024. It was NOAA's quick work that enabled the reopening of Baltimore's economically critical port after a only a couple months, Spinrad said. In Alaska, the city of Nome wants to create a deep water port, but it needs NOAA to do a channel survey first, he said. NOAA provides the science expertise in the response to major oil spills in coastal areas, including 2010's BP Deepwater Horizon, Spinrad said. In space, NOAA forecasts help prevent satellites — including those belonging to Musk's SpaceX — from colliding. The agency also watches for solar flares that can knock out parts of the electrical grid and hurt air traffic communications, officials said. NOAA owns or operates 18 satellites in orbit. 'Three years ago, SpaceX lost 40 satellites due to their ignorance of space weather implications and upper atmosphere density impacts. They immediately came to NOAA and said, 'hey, help us out',' Spinrad said, calling it 'an object lesson there for Elon Musk himself' on the agency's value. The National Weather Service is worth $102 billion a year to the U.S. economy, according to a 2022 study by the American Meteorological Society and economist Jeffrey Lazo. Before the current Trump administration, NOAA had a $6.7 billion budget, including nearly $1.4 billion for the National Weather Service, one of six sub-agencies. How many NOAA workers were dismissed? NOAA officials would not reveal how many people were fired Thursday or are being let go, citing privacy. Current and past NOAA leaders and employees have given various estimates on job cuts, ranging from 580 to 1,200. Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said the latest figure he has is 650 terminations. Jane Lubchenco, another former NOAA chief, said the firings 'are a national disaster and a colossal waste of money.' These are not high-paying jobs, but it's work being done by people who love it, so cutting NOAA is like going after coins in the couch, Maue said. 'These are people who just live and breathe this work. These are the kind of people who come in on a day off because there's a big weather event and they want to help out,' said Holy Cross University environmental sciences professor Keith Seitter, the former director of the American Meteorological Society. 'People don't go into meteorology because they want to get rich.' Seitter said there will 'be things that fall through the cracks where they shouldn't,' because of the dismissals, warning 'those things lead to situations that could be deadly'' Gallaudet, appointed by Trump, called the cuts 'self-defeating,' saying 'I could personally never work for Trump again. I did support some of the conservative policies. I still do, but he personally as a leader, he's despicable.' ___ Becky Bohrer contributed from Juneau, Alaska, and Brittany Peterson contributed from Denver. ___ ___ ___
USA Today
11-02-2025
- Climate
- USA Today
'Quite a mess': First of multiple storms poised to slam a dozen states
Hear this story ARLINGTON, Va. − A swath of the nation from Missouri to Virginia was bracing Tuesday for up to a foot of snow as the latest in a series of stormy weather fronts careen across the nation, threatening to snarl air traffic, clog roadways and shutter schools. The storms will slam across more than a dozen states and trigger highway plowing operations and airport deicing activity across about 200,000 square miles, AccuWeather said. In some locations, snowfall rates of 1-2 inches per hour could make it impossible for crews to keep roads open. A stretch from Kentucky to New Jersey and Delaware will generally see 3-6 inches of accumulation. But snow totals could reach 6-12 inches in parts of northern Virginia, eastern West Virginia and Washington, D.C., AccuWeather said. Weather Trader meteorologist Ryan Maue was more conservative with snow totals but acknowledged the region was in for a difficult storm. "A winter storm Watch for DC Tuesday afternoon: 4-6 of snowfall," Maue wrote on X. "More mixed precipitation around Richmond with sleet mixing into 3-5 of snowfall. Quite a mess." Winter blast:Storms threaten millions with snow, ice Drenching rain, flooding could reach Southeast In the Southeast the series of storms could pound some areas with up to 10 inches of rain by next Monday, AccuWeather meteorologists said. Parts of the region still recovering from the fury of Hurricane Helene in September face the risk of flash flooding. "Parts of the Asheville, North Carolina, area have not had much rain since Helene," AccuWeather Meteorologist Jesse Ferrell said. "Should the rainfall anticipated unfold, bridges and roads built but not completed with temporary asphalt, drainage ditches and culverts could be damaged." The first round of foul weather will unfold Tuesday from the upper Texas coast to central Alabama, AccuWeather said. The greatest risk from the thunderstorms, aside from flash flooding, will be localized strong wind gusts ranging from 50-60 mph. The second storm will sweep across the Plains to the Mississippi Valley on Wednesday driving similarly dangerous winds, AccuWeather said.
