WASHINGTON >> Staff of the Federal Emergency Management Agency were left baffled today after the head of the U.S. disaster agency said during a briefing that he had not been aware the country has a hurricane season, according to four sources familiar with the situation.

The U.S. hurricane season officially began on Sunday and lasts through November. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast last month that this year’s Atlantic season is expected to bring as many as 10 hurricanes, while NOAA’s Central Pacific Hurricane Center forecast one to four tropical cyclones in the region this season.

The remark was made by David Richardson, who has led FEMA since early May. It was not clear to staff whether he meant it literally, as a joke, or in some other context.

A spokespers

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