The 2024 hurricane season has brought with it a deluge of conspiracy theories and false or misleading claims about storms that have devastated some parts of the country and killed hundreds of people.
Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida on Sept. 26 as a Category 4 hurricane and moved up the East Coast as a tropical storm, bringing floods and strong winds through the southern Appalachians. Hurricane Milton hit Florida about two weeks later on Oct. 9 as a Category 3 storm.
Those intervening two weeks have seen a flood of misinformation on social media and from former President Donald Trump as he campaigns again for president.
Below are some of the claims that we’ve addressed so far. We will update this article as necessary.
- In his continued attack on the federal response to Hurricane Helene, Trump falsely said that no helicopters and no help were sent to the affected areas for days, blaming his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. There’s plenty of evidence that helicopters have been used and that federal, state and local disaster recovery teams have responded to help victims of the storm.
See “Trump’s False Claims of ‘No Help’ or Helicopters Sent for Helene Victims” for more.
- Experts say people cannot create or meaningfully alter hurricanes through existing weather modification techniques. That has not stopped a deluge of social media posts baselessly claiming or implying that Hurricanes Helene and Milton were intentionally created, steered or otherwise controlled by someone. Among those adding fuel to these claims was Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, which has been affected by the storms.
See “Baseless Claims Proliferate on Hurricanes and Weather Modification” for more.
- The Federal Aviation Administration regularly restricts the airspace over areas affected by natural disasters to allow rescue and relief efforts to take place. But this routine activity has sparked misleading posts online that claimed volunteer drone operators were banned from helping in recovery efforts following Hurricane Helene. Volunteers can use the restricted airspace as long as they coordinate with the agencies conducting relief work, according to the FAA.
See “Social Media Posts Misrepresent Airspace Restrictions After Hurricane Helene” for more.
- Social media posts misleadingly claimed that “Trump’s Project 2025 will end” the Federal Emergency Management Agency and provide “ZERO federal help” to disaster victims. Project 2025, which is being led and funded by the conservative Heritage Foundation, is not Trump’s plan, and there is no evidence that Trump would “end” FEMA. In fact, his administration spent tens of billions on disaster aid when he was president.
See “Posts Make Misleading Claims About FEMA’s Future Under Trump” for more.
- As of Oct. 8, FEMA has provided more than $210 million in immediate assistance to communities affected by Hurricane Helene, which the Department of Homeland Security secretary has described as the start of “a multibillion-dollar, multiyear recovery.” Social media posts and Trump have falsely claimed that storm victims are getting “only $750,” and misleadingly compare that to foreign aid.
See “Posts Misrepresent Federal Response, Funding for Hurricane Helene Victims” for more.
- FEMA said that no funds intended for disaster relief have been used to pay for programs that respond to illegal immigration. But Trump has falsely claimed that the Biden administration “stole” money for hurricane recovery and spent it on housing for people in the U.S. illegally.
See “Trump’s False Claim of Stolen Disaster Relief Funds” for more.
- Project 2025 proposes dismantling the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Some social media posts have misleadingly claimed that the project calls for closing the National Hurricane Center, a part of NOAA. The project proposes that NOAA be “dismantled and many of its functions eliminated, sent to other agencies, privatized, or placed under the control of states and territories.” Climate experts told us the project’s proposals would hamper, but not end, the NHC’s operations.
See “Posts Misrepresent Plan for National Hurricane Center in Project 2025” for more.
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