Trump threatens to axe emergency fire aid for California

President Donald Trump is threatening to withhold Federal Emergency Management Agency money to help California cope with wildfires if the state doesn't improve its forest management practices. Trump tweeted Wednesday that California gets billions of dollars for fires that could have been prevented with better management. The state's former top firefighter Ken Pimlott disagrees, saying last month that California leads the nation in clearing away dead trees and thinning areas to remove fuel for fires.

World
AFP
Published Date: 12:00 | 09 January 2019
Modified Date: 08:35 | 09 January 2019

President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he is cutting emergency federal aid sent to help California after devastating wildfires unless the Democratic-led state gets its "act together."

"Billions of dollars are sent to the State of California for Forrest fires that, with proper Forrest Management, would never happen," Trump tweeted, initially misspelling the word forest before repeating the tweet with the word corrected.

"Unless they get their act together, which is unlikely, I have ordered FEMA to send no more money. It is a disgraceful situation in lives & money!" he said, referring to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The warning extends Trump's feud with California authorities over responsibility for a recent series of deadly fires including the Camp Fire in November, which killed more than 80 people -- the worst fire in state history.

Where Trump focused on poor forest management, Democrats in California said changing climate patterns also had played a major role.

It was unclear whether Trump had already ordered a withholding of FEMA funds or how that would work in practice.

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