Official overseeing the National Hurricane Center testified to Congress it’s fully staffed

(CNN) — The National Hurricane Center is “fully staffed” and any suggestion that the Trump administration fired meteorologists at the National Weather Service is “fake news,” “preposterous and silly,” Commerce Sec. Howard Lutnick testified to Congress this week.

But the administration did fire meteorologists, and the nation’s top hurricane forecasting office is not fully staffed as the season is underway.

The NHC, like many other parts of the NWS , has a staffing shortfall currently, with five vacancies at the center in Miami, including at least four meteorologists.

None of the NHC positions can be filled due to the federal hiring freeze, though the NWS was able to get an exemption for 126 mission-critical vacancies at other forecast offices around the country.

The critical staffi