Following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene in the United States this week, a new storm has emerged on social media: false rumors about how disaster funds have been used and even claims that government officials control the weather.
Local and national officials said they are trying to combat rumors, including one spread by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
One of the most far-fetched rumors is that Helene was a storm designed to allow companies to exploit regional lithium deposits. Others accuse President Joe Biden’s administration of using federal disaster funds to help immigrants in the country illegally, or suggest that authorities are deliberately abandoning bodies in the cleanup.
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X Thursday night: “Yes, they can control the weather. It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.”
The conspiracy theories come at a delicate time for efforts to storm rescue and recoveryone of the deadliest US hurricanes of this century, and with just over a month left until thepresidential elections between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Republicans and Democrats alike say the rumors are causing problems.
White House officials on Friday accused some Republican leaders and conservative media outlets of intentionally spreading rumors to divide Americans in a way that could harm disaster relief efforts.
“Misinformation of this type can deter people from seeking critical help when they need it most,” a White House memo said. “It is essential that every leader, whatever their political beliefs, stops spreading this poison.”
The memo highlighted a claim by Trump during a rally this week that Biden and Harris had used emergency federal funds “on people who should not be in our country.”
“This is FALSE,” the memo said. “No disaster relief funding was used to support migrant housing and services. None. Not at all. Not at all.”
In response to a request for comment for this article, the Trump campaign repeated accusations that FEMA funds had been spent housing migrants who are in the country illegally.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has the funding for Helene’s immediate response and recovery efforts, the White House memo said, and has provided millions of dollars in aid to those recovering.
FEMA has been the target of so many falsehoods that it has created a rumor response page on its website to try to quell them.
Helene hit Florida a week ago and has killed more than 200 people and devastated half a dozen states in the southeastern United States.
Some officials are trying to combat misinformation on social media themselves. Katie Keaotamai, who works at FEMA but said she was speaking on social media in her personal capacity, explained FEMA’s disaster response processes in several TikTok posts with thousands of views.
Catastrophic events are often politicized, said Kate Starbird, co-founder of the Center for an Informed Public at the University of Washington, adding that social media rewards “sensationalism and outrage with attention.”
“Manipulation of the awareness process (for example, by spreading conspiracy theories and misinformation) and politicization of the event will make it difficult both to respond and recover and to make informed decisions about how to prepare for and mitigate the next disaster,” Starbird explained.
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