A multi-agency disaster assessment team, including about 50 personnel from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), was ordered to stand down in Chicago earlier this month due to concerns over overlapping operations with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents conducting patrols in the area, according to a report by The Washington Post.
On November 6, approximately ten groups of disaster workers were told to halt their surveying of storm-damaged areas, as FEMA officials feared that the presence of ICE agents and vehicles could spark chaos or conflict, endangering citizens and government employees. The stand-down occurred despite an alleged warning in October from a FEMA regional administrator to the Department of Homeland Security about the planned surveying operations.
The disaster personnel were in the region because state officials had requested assistance mapping damage after the Trump administration denied an initial appeal for a disaster declaration for summer flooding. The decision to pull back meant teams did not return to parts of Gage Park, a hard-hit area struggling with sewer backups and mold following July and August flooding.
FEMA stated that it completed all required damage assessments in Illinois as planned, and that field schedules can shift for operational reasons. The agency declined to comment on the activities of other federal agencies. The federal government has been surging immigration agents in the Chicago area since September as part of 'Operation Midway Blitz,' and their presence has sparked continued protests.
The Trump administration has shifted both funds and focus away from disaster aid toward deportation operations, reassigning agents from across the government, including FEMA, to immigration missions. In August, the administration moved to shift $155 million from FEMA to pay for immigration detention space, and has threatened to cut off federally funded volunteer aid groups that offer services to undocumented people.
