Trump to nominate Jeffrey Byard to replace outgoing FEMA head Brock Long
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump will nominate a top disaster response official in his administration to head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, replacing former FEMA administrator Brock Long.
Jeffrey Byard, of Alabama, currently serves as an associate administrator at the agency, overseeing disaster response, recovery, logistics, and field operations. the White House said Friday.
Byard, a Marine Corps veteran who has four daughters with his wife, Sara, previously worked for the Alabama Emergency Management Agency and led operations for the state during the country’s first large-scale state evacuation during Hurricane Gustav in 2008. He was sworn into his current role in 2017 during the response to Hurricanes Irma and Harvey.
He would replace Long, 43, who drew praise and criticism for his agency's response to major disasters, including Hurricane Maria. Long announced this week he was leaving the agency.
Long oversaw the agency through several major disasters, including Western wildfires last year and the destruction of Puerto Rico by Hurricane Maria in 2017. The Trump administration was roundly criticized for not doing more in the aftermath of Maria, which ravaged the island, left nearly 3,000 people dead, and thousands without power.
"While this has been the opportunity of the lifetime, it is time for me to go home to my family – my beautiful wife and two incredible boys," Long said in a statement released by the agency.
His eagerness to be with his family nearly cost him his job last fall.
As his agency was preparing for Hurricane Florence's landfall on the southeast coast in September, Long was being investigated by the DHS inspector general looking into his weekend use of government vehicles for personal travel to his home in Hickory, North Carolina.
Long, who had been Alabama's top emergency official from 2008-11, kept his job after being ordered to repay the federal government for the use of the vehicle.
He announced on Wednesday that he was leaving the agency.
Contributing: Ledyard King
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump to nominate Jeffrey Byard to replace outgoing FEMA head Brock Long
