Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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How did the "Waffle House Index" originate?

The index is an informal metric used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to measure how bad a natural disaster is.

Former FEMA head Craig Fugate said the origins of the index came  in the aftermath of Hurricane Charley. Fugate was head of Florida’s emergency management department at the time.

“Red is closed; that's bad. Yellow is open with a limited menu. And then green, it's good; they got their full menu,” Fugate told PBS News Hour’s Amna Nawaz on the latest episode of “Settle In."

Tap the link in our bio for more from the episode.

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