A warning in the wake of President Trump's cutting staff at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Meteorologist Paul Douglas has spent decades doing the weather at numerous stations including at WCCO Radio, WCCO-TV, and KARE 11 in the Twin Cities plus for several years in Chicago. Douglas is not mincing words as the government cuts hundreds of staff from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration which is the overarching agency of the National Weather Service.
"It's not a luxury, it's a necessity, and we shouldn't have to pay for information that could save our lives.
Last week, hundreds of weather forecasters and other federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration employees on probationary status were fired. Federal workers who were not let go said the afternoon layoffs included meteorologists who do crucial local forecasts in National Weather Service offices across the country.
Douglas told WCCO Radio's Adam and Jordana that it's hard to understand why it's happening.
"Sure not an efficiency play because they're not just cutting fat, they're cutting into bone," says Douglas.
He says people take for granted the importance the agency has had over the years.
"The death toll from severe weather has gone down, and that's because we have the best weather service in the world that has the best technology in the world," says Douglas.
He adds that the cuts made so far could impact the agency's ability to keeping people safe during extreme weather conditions.
For Douglas, the cuts coming from the Trump administration and advisor Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency are hitting an organization for reasons beyond just efficiency. He sees political motives behind the targeting of NOAA.
"NOAA had the audacity to connect the dots and talk about climate change," says Douglas. "The climate is changing. I think that's a big part of it. I think it is. They're removing climate change as if that's going to remove the threat."
NOAA’s 301 billion weather forecasts every year reach 96% of American households.
The firings are “going to affect safety of flight, safety of shipping, safety of everyday Americans,” Admiral Tim Gallaudet said Friday. President Donald Trump appointed Gallaudet as acting NOAA chief during his last administration. “Lives are at risk for sure.”
Former NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad agreed.
“We’re getting into prime tornado time. We’re getting into planting season for the agricultural season for the bread belt,” Spinrad said. “It’s going to affect safety. It’s going to affect the economy.”
That’s because “NOAA sort of gets forgotten, until it’s very important,” said private meteorologist Ryan Maue, a conservative and a NOAA chief scientist under Trump.
“This throws sand in the gears” of an agency that is understaffed but doing “a Herculean job,” Maue said.
Elon Musk has repeatedly defended federal workforce cuts by his Department of Government Efficiency as “common sense.”
“The people voted for major government reform, and that’s what the people are going to get,” Musk said from the Oval Office this month. “That’s what democracy is all about.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.