In the five months since Trump chose Neil Jacobs as NOAA administrator, hundreds of NOAA scientists and meteorologists have left the agency through a combination of firings, buyouts and retirements.

Experts said the NWS did a good job warning about the flooding, but questions remain about whether the cuts played a role.

Just weeks ago, President Donald Trump said he wanted to begin “phasing out” the Federal Emergency Management Agency after this hurricane season to “wean off of FEMA” and “bring it down to the state level.

Key positions at National Weather Service offices across Texas are vacant, sowing doubt over the state’s ability to respond to natural disasters as rescuers comb through the flood-ravaged Hill Country.

NWS says Flash Flood Warnings were issued on July 3 and early July 4 in Central Texas, giving more than three hours of warning.

The National Weather Service says its Central Texas office was prepared for the devastating storms, but understaffed offices may not be. Scott Friedman reports.