South
Hurricane Helene survivor endorses Trump admin's plan to nix FEMA after storm devastated Southeast
Hurricane Helene survivor Mona Roper is calling for FEMA to be eliminated six months after the storm brought landslides and historic flooding to the Appalachian communities of western North Carolina.
Her calls came in response to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem revealing her plan to reshape how disaster relief is handled, which involves eliminating the disaster resource agency that came under fire from many Republicans last year.
“She sounds very promising. It would be great to see changes,” Roper said of Noem on “Fox & Friends.”
HURRICANE HELENE: FOX WEATHER METEOROLOGIST RESCUES WOMAN FROM CAR DURING LIVE SHOT AS FLOODWATERS RISE
Homes are seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in Chimney Rock Village, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
“Samaritan’s Purse has been great here in the community, but FEMA has not. There’s still a lot of people lacking FEMA’s support. I’m lacking FEMA support myself, and it’s just something that I think to do away with… is absolutely the correct way they should proceed. I don’t think the system is capable of being revamped.”
Roper lamented that the agency designed for people “desperately in need of help” has caused them to “suffer even more.”
The massive category four storm struck the Florida coast last year and barreled through the southeast, hitting states like Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina and Virginia along with the Tar Heel State.
FEMA ADMINISTRATOR URGES HURRICANE HELENE VICTIMS TO TAKE ACTION AMID LOSING TEMPORARY HOUSING
Members of communities like Roper’s are still working to recover six months later.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell opened up about the agency’s recovery efforts on “Special Report” last year, telling Fox News, “We have been on the ground since before Hurricane Helene hit Florida and before it crossed over North Carolina, and what I would say is just because somebody doesn’t see a person in a FEMA shirt doesn’t mean that we’re not in the area.”
The agency has consistently defended its work in the region.
Roper told co-host Lawrence Jones that money “is not flowing at the speed and at the volume that it needs to be.”
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“The North Carolina damage for the storm is severe. It’s different to have a hurricane in the mountains than it is to have one in Florida,” she said.
“I’ve been trying for six months now to receive money, and our road and our bridge got washed away. FEMA says, ‘You need to fix it. Fix it and send in receipts and we’ll send you money.’ The road bridge is $500,000 to $800,000 to fix it, so that’s not feasible.
She continued, “I’m just sort of in a loophole… that I’m getting no assistance from.”
Fox News’ Diana Stancy and Maria Lencki contributed to this report.
Dallas, TX
Dallas Cowboys Might Be On List of Teams Interested in Jadeveon Clowney
With the second wave of free agency underway, it’s just a matter of time before former Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney finds a new home.
Clowney is one of the most high-profile players left on the open market and easily the best free agent out of Dallas. The former No. 1 overall pick is coming off a season in which he tallied 8.5 sacks, which was tops on the Cowboys.
When it comes to possible landing spots for Clowney, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports “some of his former teams” remain interested in Clowney, although he did not say which squads exactly, which means Dallas could be one of them.
“I gather that some of (Clowney’s) former teams are interested in him, which is pretty easy when you’ve played for as many teams as he’s played for,” Garafolo said. “So, let’s see about Clowney here in the near future.”
Clowney has played for seven different teams during his career, with the Cowboys, Houston Texans, Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans all on that list.
Would Cowboys re-sign Jadeveon Clowney?
We know Clowney liked his time in Dallas and he would be interested in coming back.
“Oh man, it was great. I enjoyed Dallas, playing on primetime every week. It was a great experience, man, and playing on Thanksgiving and Christmas was special for me. A lot of people watching, a lot of families showing up, and I had a great time playing for Dallas,” Clowney said.
We also know that, despite all the Cowboys’ additions at edge rusher, a team can never have too many. That’s especially true when Dallas has some question marks with their current ones.
The jury is still out on what a rookie in Malachi Lawrence and a second-year player in Donovan Ezeiruaku will be in 2026, and Rashan Gary is no sure thing, either, after he didn’t sack any quarterbacks in the second half of last season.
But owner Jerry Jones didn’t seem like he thought a Clowney return was in the cards after the NFL owners meetings.
“It’s real hard when you look at how Clowney came on last year in the snaps he gave us,” he said. “It’s real hard not to have a place there for Clowney, but you can’t have it all. You just can’t have it all. If things go right for us, we’ve already made a signing, we’ve made trades, we think that’s the better way to go. And, of course, we got the draft. It can very easily answer some of that question.”
There also seemed to be an indication that one of the reasons Clowney might not re-sign in Dallas is because he isn’t a good scheme fit in Christian Parker’s defense.
“He led the Cowboys in sacks last season and in January seemed like a prime candidate they would like to retain. But the move to a new scheme with DC Christian Parker seems like the Cowboys will look to other edge players first without completely shutting the door on Clowney’s return,” ESPN’s Todd Archer wrote.
The veteran would definitely push back on that notion, though.
“I walk in every year and play well on every scheme and every team I’ve been on,” Clowney said. “I want to continue to do that going into year 13. Showing people wrong and proving that I can still play at a high level. It don’t matter where I end up, where I play at, just know I’m coming to show you again and prove people wrong again.”
Whatever the case may be, it would appear based on Garafolo’s reporting that there is at least a chance Dallas might be a team interested in bringing Clowney back. We’ll just have to wait and see.
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Miami, FL
Dance NOW! Miami resurrects extinct songbird for season finale
In 1987, on the Hawaiian island of Kauaʻi, a naturalist and wildlife photographer named David Boynton captured on tape what many environmentalists feel is among the saddest sounds ever recorded.
It’s believed to be the final mating call of a male Moho braccatus — a small songbird — singing for a female that never replied.
Researchers posit that the last female of the species perished in a hurricane five years earlier. Within a few years of Boynton’s recording, the species was declared extinct.
But the lost songbird returns in Dance NOW! Miami’s new contemporary ballet titled Love-less: Dance of the Last Moho braccatus.
It makes its world premiere this week during the company’s season finale called Love Lost And Found.
The piece was created by DNM’s co-founder and co-Artistic Director Hannah Baumgarten, who says she first learned about the bird during a screening of the Sam Green documentary 32 Sounds at the Perez Art Museum in Miami.
“I heard this haunting call with no reply,” says Baumgarten. “And I was awash with so many feelings about love and loss that I just knew in that moment, I was going to make a ballet about it.”
Baumgarten says she saw parallels between the songbird’s story and how human beings cope with loss and their own mortality.
“”For me, personally, this piece became about the observations I made with my parents as I’m watching them age,” she says.
“And I’m watching my mother grapple with the differences in the speed at which she and my father are aging.”
DNM’s season finale also marks the world premiere of Traces, by the company’s co-founder and co-Artistic Director, Diego Salterini.
“It is the other end of the spectrum,” says Baumgarten. The piece charts the universal search for love, seen through the eyes of one woman.
Dance NOW! Miami’s season finale clocks in at only 80 minutes long (with two short pauses) but covers a lot of ground.
In addition to the two world premieres, DNM will perform Tandy Beal’s Forest Dreams; Deco-de, Salterini’s homage to Art Deco design and architecture; and an excerpt from Blue Pencil, DNM’s commentary on government censorship and repression.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: LOVE LOST & FOUND
Dance NOW! Miami
Program III Season Finale
WHEN: Friday, May 8 in Lauderhill &
Saturday, May 9 in Aventura
Both shows 8:00 pm
WHERE: Lauderhill Performing Arts Center
3800 NW 11th Place, Lauderhill, FL
Aventura Arts & Cultural Center
3385 NE 188th Street, Aventura, FL
More information: dancenowmiami.org
Atlanta, GA
FIFA World Cup ticket prices climb for Atlanta matches
ATLANTA – Ticket prices for FIFA World Cup matches in Atlanta are climbing into the thousands of dollars as demand grows for games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
What we know:
On FIFA’s website, some premium tickets for group-stage matches were listed starting around $2,200. Prices for Round of 16 matches increased by nearly another $1,000.
One semifinal ticket in Atlanta was listed for more than $14,000.
Atlanta’s first World Cup match is scheduled for June 15, with Spain set to face Cabo Verde.
While ticket prices continue to rise, the outlook for many U.S. hotels is less optimistic. The American Hotel and Lodging Association said bookings in most host cities are below projections.
The group cited several factors, including fewer international travelers, concerns over visa delays and rising costs.
Atlanta, however, is meeting or exceeding hotel booking expectations, according to the industry group.
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