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.

The head of FEMA’s Urban Search and Rescue branch, which runs a network of teams stationed across the country that can swiftly respond to natural disasters, resigned on Monday.

David Richardson, the acting director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), on Wednesday defended his agency’s handling of recent deadly floods in Texas, claiming the response was a “model” for “how disasters should be handled”.