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... It is not unusual for weeks to pass before FEMA approves a declaration. President Donald Trump has pointed to these waits as a reason he is considering dismantling the agency, calling FEMA "very bureaucratic" and "very slow."

The wait offers a glimpse of what could be in store for communities around the country as the summer storm season arrives and FEMA is mired in turmoil. States including Kentucky, Missouri and Oklahoma have already been battered with tornadoes this week, setting the stage for more disaster requests to FEMA. And the Atlantic hurricane season is just around the corner.

FEMA is able to respond quite effectively in many ways, but "getting the resources to those communities after the fact has been slowed," said Susan Cutter, a Carolina Distinguished Professor of Geography at the University of South Carolina and co-director of the Hazards Vulnerability & Resilience Institute.

In coming disasters, Cutter said ,she anticipates seeing slower progress in getting needed resources to communities in a timely manner. ...