Hundreds of workers at the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration have been fired by the Trump administration.
Cuts at NOAA appeared to be happening in two rounds, with 500 having been let go so far and another 800 set to be cut, according to Craig McLean, a former NOAA chief scientist who said he got the information from someone with first-hand knowledge. That's about 10% of NOAA's workforce.
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Most were on a probation period, but one fired employee told NBC10 Boston some were with NOAA for more than 20 years and had just started a new position.
NOAA meteorologist Francis Tarasiewicz, who worked as a meteorologist under the National Weather Service in Massachusetts, says he received the dreadful news Thursday.
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"My shift wrapped up around 3 in the afternoon, and I got home, and shortly after, I was greeted with a termination email," Tarasiewicz said.
He was hired recently and was still in a probation period.
"I was devastated," he said.
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The firings come amid efforts by Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to shrink a federal workforce that President Donald Trump has called sloppy.
NOAA is made up of several subagencies, including the National Weather Service and the Marine and Aviation Operations, where hurricane hunters operate.
"There is absolutely no question that these cuts will end lives, American lives," said former NBC10 Boston meteorologist Chris Gloninger, who has nearly two decades of experience. "The United States is seeing a billion-dollar disaster, meaning a disaster costing a billion dollars or more, every two and a half weeks. This is not a sector you cut from."
Meanwhile, the biggest worry for Tarasiewicz is the impact it will have on people's day-to-day lives, from weather radar at local TV stations to law enforcement that rely on the NWS when it comes to emergencies.
"This can have ripple effects," said Tarasiewicz. "A lot of people are saying, 'Well, I still have the weather on my phone,' but all of the data that your phone uses for those convenient weather forecasts, it comes from National Weather Service and NOAA and our super computers."
He added that working for the NWS was the honor of a lifetime.
NBC10 Boston has reached out to NOAA, which said it doesn't comment on personnel matters.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
