By ALEXA ST. JOHN
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will hire as many as 450 people to shore up the National Weather Service after deep cuts this spring raised concern about dangerous understaffing, the Trump administration confirmed Wednesday.
NOAA was granted permission to fill critical positions at its weather arm, including openings for meteorologists, hydrologists and electronics technicians, Trump administration officials said. The hirings are part of an exemption to a freeze on federal hiring in place through at least Oct. 15.
NOAA declined to comment further.
The planned hiring was first reported by CNN.
The Department of Government Efficiency has gutted NOAA and the National Weather Service, which are key for the nation’s daily weather forecasts, severe storm warnings, climate monitoring and more. Hundreds of NOAA forecasters and other employees have been cut, and NWS offices around the country have had a number of vacancies.
The administration has also weighed ending the sharing of satellite data that is key to effective storm tracking and stopped tracking the cost of climate change-fueled weather disasters.
Meteorologists and climate scientists have warned of consequences with fewer workers in positions that are crucial, especially as the hurricane season got underway. After deadly flash flooding that killed dozens of people in Texas last month, some local officials and Democrats suggested that the deep staffing cuts may have contributed to endangering lives, though others defended the agency’s work.
Experts cautiously applauded the exemption for hirings as positive news.
“While this new development is great news for the NWS and the American public, I would like to see that the hiring actions are actually underway,” said Louis Uccellini, former NOAA administrator for weather services and NWS director.
The hirings are said to include the “mission-critical field positions” that the agency announced it would hire for in June “to further stabilize front line operations.” The agency did not say at the time how many roles would be filled.
Alexa St. John is an Associated Press climate reporter. Follow her on X: @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at ast.john@ap.org.
Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment
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