Firing of 800 NOAA Employees

[Randy Zipser]

The attachments below are three stories from May 14th, 18th, and today, about staffing cuts at the NWS and FEMA and the recent KY tornadoes and upcoming hurricane season. Within the past hour, CNN also aired an excellent interview with Rick Spinrad, who served as the 11th Administrator of NOAA as well as Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere from 2021-2025, related to the same topic. Hopefully, CNN will re-air this interview in its entirety later today at CNN or post at CNN Weather.

 

[Mike Smith]

CNN also aired an excellent interview with Rick Spinrad, who served as the 11th Administrator of NOAA

Spinrad -- who knows nothing about meteorology -- was the source of many of the NWS's problems. From where I sit, it is chutzpah for him to complain about the current state of the NWS.

 

[Randy Zipser]

Spinrad -- who knows nothing about meteorology -- was the source of many of the NWS's problems. From where I sit, it is chutzpah for him to complain about the current state of the NWS.

Mike, I'm sure you know much more than I do about Spinrad, so I'd be interested in your comments if you happen to see that interview. RZ

 

[Mike Smith]

Randy,

Under Spinrad:

• Tens of millions were sent to his buddies in the climate field without accountability, including $60 million for "Maine Won't Wait" -- an "education" program without measurable goals. Can you imagine what the NWS could do with that $$ ?
• FOUR upper air stations closed.
• NWS hiring went from usually 3 months or so to as many as 9 months. That's why there were 300+ openings before Trump was sworn in on January 20.
• He knows nothing about weather and doesn't care. I sent a well-documented and respectful letter to him in December 2023 about the increasingly serious issues with his tornado warnings. He forwarded it down the organization and used (ahem!) creative verification figures to make the situation appear better than it actually was.

 

[Mike Smith]

We now know there was no advance warning of the STL tornado. Watch this:

You see the debris hitting the car before you hear the tornado warning come over the radar. At lower right is the time of day which also confirms the tornado was in progress before the warning.

Another giant miss!