Angela Gladwell with the Federal Emergency Management Agency speaks about the claims process to an audience full of attorneys and victims of the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire in Las Vegas, N.M., in November 2022.
Angela Gladwell with the Federal Emergency Management Agency speaks about the claims process to an audience full of attorneys and victims of the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire in Las Vegas, N.M., in November 2022.
The director of the office tasked with administering about $4 billion in relief funding for people who suffered losses caused by the Forest Service-set Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire is leaving her post as part of the consolidation of recovery operations in New Mexico.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced Angela Gladwell’s departure Wednesday. FEMA plans to create a new chief operating officer position to lead the long-term recovery efforts and “reflect the change in focus from development to effective delivery at the local level,” FEMA said in a news release.
“For those with ongoing claims, rest assured — this transition won’t have any adverse impact on your claim,” the agency said in the statement.
Gladwell’s departure comes amid ongoing criticism of FEMA’s processing of claims from people who suffered losses in the fire, which began when two prescribed burns set by the U.S. Forest Service in 2022 combined to become the state’s largest-ever wildfire. The fire swept through 341,000 acres in the mountains east of Santa Fe, destroying hundreds of homes and displacing thousands of residents in rural villages throughout the area.
Among the complaints are allegations FEMA was slow to disburse relief funding, didn’t produce requested public records about the funding fully or in a timely manner, failed to respond to or pay claims within required timelines and attempted to pressure claimants into negotiating settlements without the involvement of their attorneys.
Attorney Brian Colón, whose firm represents dozens of plaintiffs who say FEMA didn’t respond to their claims within a 180-day period outlined in statute, said he was “thrilled” to learn the office will soon be under new leadership.
“We have been deeply disappointed in Angela Gladwell’s lack of leadership and effectiveness and lack of competence,” Colón said in a phone interview Thursday. “We have taken the position for a long time that Gladwell was incompetent and didn’t have the right experience to lead this operation, and their failures have been the proof in the pudding.
“FEMA needs to replace her with someone who has legal expertise and understands Northern New Mexico,” Colón continued. “Our preference is that FEMA identify a retired judge in New Mexico that is respected by the people.”
FEMA spokesman John Mills said the agency is “actively looking for a qualified person to fill the role.” Gladwell will assist with the transition before taking an as-yet-unannounced new position within the agency, Mills said in a phone interview Thursday.
As of Thursday, FEMA had received $490 million worth of claims “with documentation,” Mills wrote in an email, and had approved about $319 million in payments, or about 65% of the documented claims.
According to Mills, an estimated $1 billion to $1.5 billion of the $4 billion is expected to be spent on reforestation claims on nonfederal lands, meaning some of the money could go to reforestation efforts on state-owned land.
The claims office will release an informational guide this week which will include checklists of the documents needed for the most common types of losses, the agency said in its news release.
“FEMA is prioritizing people who submitted claims some time ago,” Mills wrote. “We are continuing to build capacity to process claims faster and maximize payments for people affected by the fire. Payment approvals have increased by about $68 million over the last month.”
