The startling admission by Mayorkas comes as FEMA grapples with the widespread damage of Hurricane Helene, A Category 4 hurricane that ripped through the southeast costing billions of dollars, causing widespread infrastructure damage, food shortages, and more than 100 deaths. Many are still unaccounted for as well.

A South Carolina representative is looking to redirect funds to hurricane relief efforts from a FEMA program that supports migrant arrivals – one for which a handful of Massachusetts congressmen

Following the devastation Hurricane Helene brought to several states throughout the South, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is pushing back on claims that money for disaster aid was spent on assistance for migrants.