After Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency tore through the National Weather Service in a blur with firings, the government has rehired many of its employees, NBC News reported.
The rehires come after a summer where extreme weather incidents put the cuts to the National Weather Service under increased scrutiny. Specifically, one government official told NBC that staff at the service believe floods in Texas and the aftermath sparked the rehiring spree.
Reps. Mike Flood (R-Neb.) and Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.) said that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration received permission to fill 450 positions at the National Weather Service including meteorologists, hydrologists and radar technicians.
“For months, Congressman Flood and I have been fighting to get NOAA and NWS employees the support they need in the face of cuts to staff and funding,” Sorensen said. “Hundreds of unfilled positions have caused NWS offices across the country to cancel weather balloon launches, forgo overnight staffing, and force remaining meteorologists to overwork themselves. While I welcome this overdue news to hire more meteorologists, we need to pass our bipartisan bill to ensure these new hires are permanent and protected from any future cuts.”
Flood, a Republican, also hailed the move.
“For decades the National Weather Service has helped keep our communities safe with accurate and timely forecasts,” he said in a statement. “This announcement from the administration sends a message that they’re focused on strengthening the NWS for years to come. I applaud the decision and will continue to work to support the agency’s critical work.”
But the relief will likely not come soon. A NOAA official also told NBC News that it will likely take months to fill the vacant positions.
USAJobs.gov, the website for jobs within the federal government, lists nine positions across NOAA, the parent agency of the NWS.
DOGE made steep cuts to the agency earlier this year, much the chagrin of many. It was part of DOGE’s efforts to shrink the federal workforce early in the Trump administration.
In May, CNN reported that the NWS hoped to fill 155 positions after mass layoffs and reductions in force. The NWS even offered to pay expenses for moving for reassignment opportunities.
The cuts to the NWS came under further scrutiny after deadly flooding in the Hill Country of Texas led to 135 deaths, including youth campers and counselors.
The Commerce Department and NOAA fired more than 600 probationary workers, including hurricane hunters, meteorologists and storm modelers. Five former directors of the NWS said that staff shortages led to a needless loss of life.
The National Weather Service also suspended weather balloon observations – which measure data on temperature, wind speed, humidity and other benchmarks used to predict severe storms – after the staff cuts to NOAA cuts.
