Photo By Spc. Ayanna Tillman | U.S. Army Spc. Alejandro Gomez, a horizontal construction engineer with the 863rd...... read more read more
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Hurricane Helene made landfall less than an hour before midnight September 26, 2024, causing widespread damage across Georgia and other states. The Georgia National Guard, which had been monitoring the progress of the hurricane and staging response capacity for days before the impact, dispatched Soldiers, Airmen and State Defense Force (SDF) volunteers to assist those in need. Over the course of two weeks, more than 1,900 Georgia Army and Air National Guardsmen and the Georgia SDF conducted 105 separate missions as directed by the Georgia Emergency Management Homeland Security Agency.
“Our response to Hurricane Helene demonstrated the capacity of the Georgia National Guard to exercise large-scale domestic emergency response operations across a wide geographic area,” said Lt. Col. Pervis Brown, Deputy Director of Domestic Operations.
As part of the initial effort, the Georgia National Guard (NG) assigned liaison officers to work with local emergency management agencies to help match local response requirements with available Guard assets. Engineers and chainsaw strike teams, organized under the Columbus-based 648th Maneuver Enhancement Team cleared nearly 1,200 miles of obstructed roads to permit local travel and onward movement of relief supplies.
The 177th Brigade Engineer Battalion (BEB) began movement the day of the storm from Statesboro to Valdosta. Teams quickly cleared roads from Valdosta along the path of the storm back to Statesboro ensuring first responders, food and water access to citizens.
“Our committed and professional service members were able to swiftly respond to provide Georgians relief. Essential equipment, capability and local relationships were used to clear routes, deliver supplies and assist local leaders to ensure the safety and resilience of our communities,” said Lt. Col. Craig Henderson, commander of the 177th BEB.
Special units of the Georgia NG also worked to increase the capabilities of county and local responders. The Georgia Air National Guard’s 116th Air Control Wing and 165th Airlift Wing provided Joint Incident Site Communications Capability mobile systems permitted a seamless line of communication between the Guard and first responders.
Members of the Augusta-based 878th Engineer Battalion helped prevent a water crisis when a pump supplying drinking water to more than 160,000 citizens failed. Generator and diesel mechanics of the 878th diagnosed the failure in the City of Augusta Utilities Department pump system and brought the system online.
Logisticians and transportation personnel established a forward supply point in Macon to facilitate movement of supplies, drawing heavily from the Macon-based 148th Brigade Support Battalion of the 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and transportation units of the Marietta-based 78th Troop Command and 201st Regional Support Group.
The Georgia NG logistical effort also assisted in the movement of more than 350 trailers of supply. This operation was augmented by fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft which transported more than 92,000 pounds of cargo. A Georgia Air NG C-130J aircraft of the Savannah-based 165th Airlift Wing, transported pallets of meals-ready-to-eat provided by the Arkansas National Guard from Little Rock to Georgia where they were distributed to impacted communities. Additionally, helicopters of the Marietta-based 78th Aviation Troop Command, provided heavy lift capability to transport personnel and relief supplies in Georgia and North Carolina.
Brown noted that relief supplies were distributed at 53 points of distributions (POD) supported by local emergency management officials, contractors, community volunteers, Georgia Guardsmen and SDF personnel. By the end of the response, nearly 54,000 vehicles were supplied with hundreds of thousands of cases of water, food, and bags of ice.
Almost 1,000 Georgia DOD personnel supported the POD mission through coordination and transportation of trailers as well as the physical distribution of relief supplies.
The response to Hurricane Helene, demonstrated the capacity of the Georgia National Guard to exercise large-scale domestic emergency response operations across a wide geographic area. The effort encompassed Soldiers from all five of the Georgia Army National Guard brigades and both wings of the Georgia Air National Guard as well as hundreds of Georgia State Defense Force personnel.
While engaged in its largest storm response since Tropical Storm Alberto in 1994, the Georgia NG also had personnel deployed in support of commanders in six continents.
| Date Taken: | 10.25.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 10.25.2024 16:41 |
| Story ID: | 483970 |
| Location: | GEORGIA, US |
| Web Views: | 197 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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