Aaron Blake writes:

For weeks, misinformation about the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Hurricane Helene response has spread far and wide on social media platforms — with more than a helpful nudge from Donald Trump, Elon Musk and the relaxed moderation policies of Musk’s platform, X.

The real consequences of that have begun to show.

The Washington Post reported late Sunday that federal emergency responders were ordered evacuated from Rutherford County, N.C., on Saturday due to a reported threat from militia. An official with the U.S. Forest Service said the National Guard “had come across x2 trucks of armed militia saying there were out hunting FEMA.”

Earlier in the day, a resident threatened FEMA personnel in a trailer in the same county, according to two volunteers with Cajun Navy, a relief organization. Former Forest Service official Riva Duncan also said people had been harassing federal employees who were delivering aid to the area, saying they didn’t want the help.

Ashe County, N.C., Sheriff Phil Howell cited “threats” made against FEMA employees in nearby counties — though not in his, he said — and said the officials had “paused their process as they are assessing the threats.”

Separately, Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) told MSNBC on Sunday that “we had two counties [where] folks reported different militia groups attacking and threatening FEMA.”

The origin of the threats and how serious they have been isn’t yet known. The North Carolina National Guard has reportedly said it has no actual reports of encountering militia, though authorities in the state arrested an individual Saturday and charged him in connection with alleged threats made against FEMA.

But it’s clear that the situation has led to heightened tensions, and that has now delayed recovery efforts. And it’s easy to connect that to the volatile environment that social media misinformation has created in the areas most affected by Helene in western North Carolina. Both Musk and Trump have contributed to that.

It’s now the second time in a month that a Trump-fueled conspiracy theory has preceded apparent threats made in the relevant area — with the last one being Trump’s false claims about Haitian migrants stealing and eating pets in Springfield, Ohio. Each time, local Republican officials have sought to combat the conspiracy theories and warned of the harm they could do.

Both instances reinforce the potential danger of Trump’s conspiratorial bent and willingness to deploy such misinformation and political tactics even in tense and tragic situations. Trump unleashed a torrent of similar misinformation early in the coronavirus pandemic and after the 2020 election as he sought to overturn the results — the latter of which culminated in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Most prominent among the Helene conspiracy theories has been that FEMA has blocked materials and seized property from affected areas. Rutherford County is a focal point of such theories, with users falsely claiming that the government aimed to seize lithium deposits in Chimney Rock in Rutherford County.

Edwards last week cited that false claim at the very top of a news release seeking to debunk various conspiracy theories related to the hurricane. North Carolina state Sen. Kevin Corbin (R) also prominently cited the theory while seeking to combat misinformation.

The government in neighboring Buncombe County reported last week that it was inundated with calls about FEMA purportedly rejecting donations and seizing property.

As far back as last week — before the most recent events — a nonprofit group warned of potential militia activity related to such claims. The Institute for Strategic Dialogue connected the conspiracy theories to “calls to send militias to face down FEMA for the perceived denial of aid, or to shoot and/or harm FEMA officials and the agency’s emergency responders.”

To be clear, it’s not just social media users promoting this underlying theory. It has also been Trump, Musk and prominent MAGA influencers. [Continue reading…]

CNN reports:

A North Carolina man was arrested over the weekend for allegedly threatening harm against FEMA employees responding to Hurricane Helene, according to the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office.

William Jacob Parsons, 44, was arrested and charged with Going Armed to the Terror of the Public, a misdemeanor, Capt. Jamie Keever said in a news release issued Monday.

“Parsons was armed with a handgun and a rifle,” Keever said.

The sheriff’s office began investigating Saturday after receiving a call that a man “made the comment about possibly harming FEMA employees working after the disaster of Hurricane Helene in the Lake Lure and Chimney Rock area.” [Continue reading…]