US disaster-response force stretched thin as hurricane season starts

FILE PHOTO: Representatives from FEMA speak with a resident of the Staten Island borough neighborhood of New Dorp Beach about registering with the agency for financial assistance to help recover from the storm surge of Hurricane Sandy in New York, NY, U.S., November 15, 2012. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo As Hurricane Irma bore down on Florida last September, the top U.S. disaster-response official ordered all hands on deck.

Trump says Coast Guard rescued people who ‘went out in their boats to watch’ Harvey

President Donald Trump suggested Wednesday that a main reason the US Coast Guard was so busy rescuing people during Hurricane Harvey was that people were watching the storm on boats. The Coast Guard "saved 16,000 people, many of them in Texas, for whatever reason that is," Trump said during a visit to the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters for a briefing on hurricane season.

American Airlines flight makes diverted landing after windshield shattered by hail

A hail storm shattered an American Airlines plane's windshield and caused damage to its nose on Sunday, forcing the plane to divert to El Paso, Texas. The plane landed safely despite the damage, according to the Federal Aviation Administration .

As Hurricane Season Begins, Cornyn Launches Preparedness Site

At the start of hurricane season, U.S. Senator John Cornyn launched a page on his website where Texans will be able to access resources and information associated with hurricane preparedness and disaster aid. Last month, Senator Cornyn introduced the Coastal Texas Protection Act , a provision of which has been included in the America's Water Infrastructure Act .

As storm season starts, AP photographer revisits Puerto Rico

Roberto Figueroa Caballero holds a printed photo taken on Oct. 5, 2017 of him amid his seaside home that was destroyed by Hurricane Maria, as he stands on the same property with his pet dog in the La Perla neighborhood of San Juan, Puerto Rico, May 29, 2018. Figueroa, who found a job at a pizzeria, aims to rebuild his home and is appealing FEMA's second rejection of his application.

SW Florida still dealing with Irma

Although a new hurricane season is here, many Cape Coral and Southwest Florida home owners are still feeling the affects of last year's historical storm. Lee County residents, almost nine months after Hurricane Irma blew through, are still maneuvering through insurance companies, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Small Business Administration disaster loans to return their property to its pre-hurricane state.

Lava from Kilauea ‘hotter than ever’ after eruption, scientists warn

Lava bubbling to the surface on Hawaii's Big Island is the hottest and most fluid it's been since Kilauea erupted four weeks ago - measuring at least 1,652 degrees Fahrenheit with no upper limit in sight, a volcanologist with the USGS warned Thursday. Stovall said scientists haven't been measuring the center but instead measured the pieces that have broken off and were in the process of cooling.

Texas ‘hero’ eyes Harvey’s devastation, awaits new hurricane season

Zachary Dearing, who became a local hero for being an impromptu leader of an evacuation center during Hurricane Harvey last year, speaks dur ROCKPORT, Texas - Destroyed houses still dot Zachary Dearing's neighborhood in the Texas coastal city of Rockport, a reminder of last year's devastation from Hurricane Harvey and a warning about what could lie ahead for such communities in the new hurricane season. Dearing, a 30-year-old harbor worker and aspiring screenwriter, was trapped in a local storm shelter during Harvey last August and was later hailed as a hero for leading care for about 120 people.

Puerto Rico grid ‘teetering’ despite $3.8 billion repair job

After months of darkness and stifling heat, Noe Pagan was overjoyed when power-line workers arrived to restore electricity to his home deep in the lush green mountains of western Puerto Rico. But to his dismay, instead of raising a power pole toppled by Hurricane Maria, the federal contractors bolted the new 220-volt line to the narrow trunk of a breadfruit tree - a safety code violation virtually guaranteed to leave Pagan and his neighbors blacked out in a future hurricane.

Trump’s Human Toll

When Hillary Clinton was running against Donald Trump in 2016, she boiled down concerns about his temperament to a central question: "Imagine Donald Trump sitting in the Situation Room, making life-or-death decisions on behalf of the United States," she said. The attack was centered on national security, but the argument went beyond the role of commander in chief to broader questions about Trump's ability to handle any number of potential crises.