The Biden-Harris administration's disaster relief agency is facing backlash after its unearthed emergency management plan went viral amid the destructive hurricane that recently devastated the southern United States

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) website lists three goals as part of its strategic plan to “address key challenges” in emergency management. The top goal listed in the agency’s priorities is to “establish equity as a foundation for emergency management.”

The second goal is “Leading the Whole Community in Climate Resilience” and the third goal is “Promoting and Sustaining a Ready FEMA and a Prepared Nation.”

According to FEMA’s plan, “diversity, equity, and inclusion cannot be optional.”

Hurricane Helene devastates Asheville, North Carolina; NATIONAL GUARD IN OPERATION, 119 RESCUED

Deanne Criswell, FEMA Administrator, speaks during a press conference at the White House, Thursday, September 26, 2024. (Al Drago/Getty Images)

“This requires FEMA’s leadership and workforce to demonstrate an increased commitment to integrating diversity, equity and inclusion in fulfilling the agency’s mission. “FEMA must draw on the diversity and experience of its workforce to consistently influence programming, policy, and decision-making.” The FEMA plan continued. “By investing in diversity and inclusion efforts – including employee resource groups and multicultural training – FEMA can increase the commitment and participation of its employees in cultivating a culture of inclusion.”

Following the outbreak of Hurricane Helene, which killed over 100 people in six states and left millions without power, social media users began criticizing FEMA's strategic plan amid the damage.

“I'm sure that people who have lost loved ones, lost their homes and now see their city underwater feel really great knowing that FEMA's number one goal is to wake up. Everything about her terrible reaction makes sense now. What an embarrassment,” conservative activist Robby Starbuck said in a post on X.

“Our government is broken,” wrote author and scientist Dr. Robert Malone on the agency's plan. “I strongly disagree – FEMA’s first priority should be emergency management.”

“If FEMA's response to #HurricaneHelene is slower, it could be because the agency is making equity a 'foundation of emergency management,'” Gabriella Hoffman, director of an Independent Women's Forum, said on X. “Yikes.”

However, FEMA denies that the agency's strategic plan has affected hurricane disaster relief.

“That's a lie. We help everyone, regardless of their origin, as quickly as possible before, during and after disasters. That’s our mission and that’s our focus,” Public Affairs Director Jaclyn Rothenberg told Fox News Digital. “We care about people, all people. We take very seriously our responsibility to serve all communities, regardless of background, so we understand where people come from and what their needs are so we can provide life-saving and life-sustaining support.”

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“In case you're wondering why the response to Hurricane Helene was a disaster… Fema's Goal 1 is to establish equity as the foundation for emergency management. This is real,” Libs from TikTok, an influential conservative account known for posting widely shared posts. Leave content, says one post.

The Rocky Broad River flows into Lake Lure and floods the town of debris at Chimney Rock, North Carolina, after heavy rains from Hurricane Helene on September 28, 2024. (Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)

“Other government agencies have declared DEI to be part of the scientific process and therefore beyond the reach of elected officials,” wrote Russ Greene, senior fellow for economic progress at the Stand Together Trust, on X.

President Biden found himself on the defensive during a news conference Monday when he was pushed by a reporter in command of the weekend's hurricane response as he was at his beach house in Delaware.

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“I ordered it,” Biden declared from the door. “I spent at least two hours on the phone yesterday and the day before yesterday. I command it. It’s called the telephone and all my security guards.”

Biden turned to leave again as the reporter began to ask, “Isn't it important for the country to see this?”

The president left and the door closed in the middle of the question.

Biden began his remarks by assuring that he and his team were in “constant contact with governors, mayors and local leaders” regarding Hurricane Helene.

Fox News' Danielle Wallace contributed reporting.