On Saturday, an official with the U.S. Forestry Service, which is supporting recovery efforts in North Carolina from Hurricane Helene, sent an urgent message to warn federal agencies that armed militias were out hunting FEMA workers.
“FEMA has advised all federal responders Rutherford County, NC, to stand down and evacuate the county immediately. The message stated that National Guard troops 'had come across x2 trucks of armed militia saying there were out hunting FEMA.’”
Two federal officials confirmed the authenticity of the e-mail, while one Forest Service coordinator said responders moved to a “safe area” and work clearing trees in some areas was paused.
By Sunday afternoon, those workers were back in place.
Chimney Rock, in Rutherford County, was one place where conspiracy theories spread on social media, including that the government was planning to seize the decimated village and bulldoze bodies under rubble.
While news outlets and authorities debunked the conspiracy, people took to social media calling for militias to go after FEMA.
One retired Forest Service official who lives in Asheville said people have been yelling at federal employees delivering aid or showing up to do repairs, saying, “We don’t want your help here.”
Another was pulling into a gas station when someone yelled at him to leave, saying “We don’t want the government here.”
One person familiar with FEMA operations said the agency was working out of an abundance of caution and its teams were operating at fixed locations and secure areas instead of the usual practice of going door to door.
