Ken Pagurek, a longtime Philadelphia firefighter who served as chief of FEMA’s search and rescue branch for the past year, was well-versed in major disaster response.

Ken Pagurek, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Urban Search and Rescue chief, has resigned amid criticism over the agency's delayed response to Texas flooding and efforts by the federal government to dismantle the organization.

Urban Search and Rescue Chief Ken Pagurek quit over a new policy that led to delays in FEMA's response to the flooding in Texas on July 4, sources said.