An official from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees FEMA, said he meant the comment as a joke.

WASHINGTON (TNND) — The new head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has staff concerned after reportedly telling personnel during a meeting that he was previously unaware that the United States has a hurricane season, which began on Sunday.

When you're in charge of the United States' disaster response agency, the bare minimum expectation is to be aware of natural disaster timelines—particularly something as routine as hurricane season. Yet,