As many cities try to recover after the devastation of Hurricane Helene, misinformation about the hurricane is growing at a rapid pace. Members of the Republican party are suggesting that the hurricane was manufactured, as well as spreading false claims about relief funds. Turning a natural disaster into a political fight is harming hurricane recovery and the ability to prepare for future natural disasters.

The controversy around the origin of Hurricane Helene started with the claims from Republican party members that the hurricane was manufactured. On social media platform X, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene posted “Yes, they can control the weather” in response to another post that claimed that a hurricane can be manufactured through cloud seeding.

As the rumors about the origin of the hurricane started spreading, Greene posted a map of the area that was most affected by the hurricane and compared it to the Electoral College map suggesting that the hurricane was used to suppress Republican voters.

Several meteorologists said that the government cannot control hurricanes and that cloud seeding would not be able to impact hurricanes as is being suggested online. The nature of hurricanes is too powerful for humans to be able to control them.

“It’s so stupid, it’s got to stop,” said President Joe Biden in response to claims that the government is controlling the weather. During his remarks, President Biden also pledged federal support in efforts to recover after the hurricane.

A White House memo noted that “disinformation of this kind can discourage people from seeking critical assistance when they need it most.” False claims about natural disasters create mistrust between the public and the government and are making hurricane recovery difficult.

Kevin Corbin, a Republican from the North Carolina Senate, spoke out about the struggle with disinformation around the hurricane in a Facebook post. In his post, he said that disinformation around the hurricane is distracting from the recovery efforts. Corbin mentioned another senator who received 15 calls in one day about false claims.

After Hurricane Helene, former President Donald Trump claimed that the disaster relief funds were used for housing migrants. Trump also claimed that the government is withholding funds from Republicans who were impacted by the hurricane because of their political affiliation.

The White House clarified that no disaster relief funds were used to house migrants and that federal relief funds are being used to help victims of natural disasters, which people can access by applying. Federal Emergency Management Agency is offering immediate relief of $750 per person for emergency items like clothing and food. People impacted by the hurricane may also be eligible for other forms of assistance from FEMA.

To combat misinformation about Hurricane Helene, FEMA created a website page dedicated to debunking rumors about the hurricane. The creation of the “Hurricane Rumor Response” page on the FEMA website shows the far-reaching impact of rumors about hurricane relief.

The misinformation around Hurricane Helene is indicative of the lack of education about climate change and the lack of understanding of natural disasters. Many Republicans deny the existence of climate change with Gov. Ron DeSantis going as far as removing mentions of climate change from state laws.

The result of continuous denial of climate change is clear; people are starting to experience the impact of climate change with not enough resources to protect themselves. The constant political fight around the existence of climate change is diverting attention from preparing infrastructure for stronger hurricane seasons.

The country needs to provide more funding to FEMA as experts are warning about natural disasters only getting worse as climate continues to change. On Oct. 3, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warned that FEMA does not have enough funding to last the rest of hurricane season.

According to Mayorkas, while FEMA is meeting the immediate needs with the funds that are currently available, with more hurricanes expected there is not enough to make it through the entire season. There is a need for more FEMA funding, however, it is likely that top Republicans will not approve more funding.