Posted on 09/02/2005 4:20:20 PM PDT by SandRat
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Sept. 2, 2005) – Thousands of National Guard and active-duty Soldiers from across the nation are deploying to the Gulf coast to help with Hurricane Katrina recovery operations.
Troops from the 1st Cavalry Division and 4th Infantry Division based out of Fort Hood, Texas, are now part of Joint Task Force Katrina, headquartered at Camp Shelby, Miss. Helicopters and crews from Hood’s 1st Air Cavalry Brigade are the lead air element of the task force.
More than 19,500 National Guard Soldiers were on duty to assist with the hurricane recovery in Louisiana and Mississippi as of Sept. 2, according to a Guard Bureau spokesman, with thousands more en route from across the nation expected to arrive this weekend.
The Ohio National Guard, for instance, reported it is preparing to deploy about 1,500 Soldiers and airmen to assist in the hurricane rescue and recovery efforts. The units will provide security and general support in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.
Arkansas Guard opens doors to evacuees
The Arkansas National Guard is preparing to open 59 Guard readiness centers (formerly referred to as armories) in 58 counties this weekend to assist with efforts to register hurricane evacuees. Two other Guard centers there have been serving as shelters since Aug. 30.
About 1,000 Soldiers and airmen from the Arkansas National Guard are already involved in relief efforts in Louisiana and Mississippi. Two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters are flying search and rescue missions along the Gulf Coast and several Soldiers have been assisting with the evacuation of the New Orleans Veterans Administration Medical Center.
A team manning a highly specialized communications truck from Arkansas is supporting the Louisiana joint operations center at Zephyr Field near New Orleans.
More than 40 Soldiers from the 93rd Signal Brigade out of Fort Gordon, Ga., are providing communications support to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the joint task force at Camp Shelby, about 100 miles north of New Orleans. The communications support includes both secure and non-secure voice and data communications, and video teleconferencing, officials said.
Continental Armies have key role
Joint Task Force Katrina at Camp Shelby is commanded by Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honoré, commanding general of First U.S. Army. Joint Task Force Katrina has the responsibility for coordinating overall DoD relief efforts in the affected areas. Both the First and Fifth Armies fall under the control of Northern Command during the disaster-relief operation, officials said. FirstArmy is in charge of mobilizing the reserve component eat of the Mississippi, and Fifth Army is west of the Mississippi.
Soldiers from Fifth Army and the 75th Division are assisting in efforts to evacuate people from the New Orleans Superdome to the Houston Astrodome. The Superdome, used as a temporary shelter for thousands of people, was itself badly damaged during the disaster, causing the need for further evacuation to the Astrodome nearly 355 miles away.
Helicopters assess damage, haul logistics
Task Force Katrina aircraft from Fort Hood were initially given the mission of flying assessment teams for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Col. Dan Shanahan, commander of the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division.
“Once we finish those missions, we’ll be flying food, water, logistical support missions and providing evacuations of people out of dangerous areas,” Shanahan said.
“Right now, there is a lot of ambiguity on the ground, but every day we’re making great progress and helping those great people that were hurt in this hurricane,” Shanahan added.
Shanahan said that as of Sept. 1, 80 aircraft and 300 Fort Hood Soldiers were part of Task Force Katrina, and he expected that number to grow.
One of the task force’s CH-47 Chinooks was loaded Sept. 1 with more than 16,000 pounds – mainly generators and initial supply items for the forward-deploying troops.
“I’m just glad to help,” said Chief Warrant Officer 2 T.J. Saari, a Blackhawk pilot with 2-227th Aviation. “It feels a little different than Iraq. Over there, it’s the job you signed up for. Here, we’re just lending out a helping hand.”
The impact of Hurricane Katrina and helping those in need extends well beyond the deployments to Louisiana for some Soldiers. Several Fort Hood Soldiers have family in the areas devastated by the hurricane. Shanahan said that his driver’s family, from Mississippi, has relocated temporarily to central Texas.
Several troops have had to make sacrifices on the home front to help those in need. The aviation troops are eager to help, whether they are personally affected by the disaster or not.
“I’m glad to help. This is what I do” said Spc. Chad Webster, a flight operations specialist with Headquarters Company, 1st ACB. “But it’s my son’s birthday on the sixth. It’s the fourth birthday I’ll miss, and he’ll be four years old.”
(Editor’s note: Spc. Colby Hauser of 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs was a significant contributor to this article, along with National Guard news releases and one from Fort Huachuca, Ariz.)
Help coming from all around.
I just have to think that if you were a young person and wanted to be a part of the best organization on the planet making a real difference in this world, you would be drawn to the US military. When no one else can get it done, they always can. How good must that make them, and us, feel.
Just heard that 300 National Guard from Michigan being deployed
Personally I think things are starting to look up down there. You wouldn't know it from the endless string of panicked threads. Ive been watching the news closely and I'm seeing a lot more dry ground, hundreds if not thousands of trucks and buses, and best of all smaller crowds.
It's a long way from over but things are beginning to get under control.
That's what soldiers do...they Git 'er done:)
That's the very reason that I've been posting the threads that I have been putting up. There's lots more good news thatn bad.
“I’m glad to help. This is what I do” said Spc. Chad Webster, a flight operations specialist with Headquarters Company, 1st ACB. “But it’s my son’s birthday on the sixth. It’s the fourth birthday I’ll miss, and he’ll be four years old.”
I wholeheartedly agree. Just look at how relieved the people are to see the guys in uniform. In spite of the hate for our military spewed by the MSM and thelikes of Hillary, Fat Kennedy, Pelosi, etc, Americans know they are the best in the world.
Hubby AshfieldK used to be 1775th MP company out of Redford, but he's been out four or five years now. He heard that three of the five elementary schools that were just closed in Lansing are being offered up as shelters for 'cane survivors. I missed the local news to see if that rumor is true.
I keep an eye out for your posts. They are great.
Units from 49 States + Puerto Rico are being deployed, the only exceptions being Guam and Hawaii, which at this point in time are major support locations in support of operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The next big deployment, mostly civilian, will be firefighting and hazmet units from all over the country. In the days ahead environmental & health issues will be paramount. Much of the infrastructure of the area has been destroyed or damaged badly. This includes potable water, electric, communication and drainage systems. Whether the low lying areas in New Orleans and points south will fully recover is an open question.
My mom told me she read it in the paper I think, however I wonder with the $$ problems Lansing has if the city is up to the task
America has the greatest military on the face of the Earth. I wonder if it's because the Commies won't let military recruiters on the nation's Marxist college campii? Hmmmmmm.
BTTT!!!!!!!
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