The United States Army
10/12/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 10/12/2024 15:10
National Guard Helps Hurricane Milton, Helene Victims
[Link] 1 / 6Show Caption +Hide Caption -U.S. Soldiers assigned to Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 124th Infantry Regiment, 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, deliver water, meals and non-perishable goods to senior citizens in the Spanish Lake community in Port St. Lucie, Florida, Oct. 11, 2024. The state of Florida established point of distribution centers throughout Florida and deployed logistic staging areas to ensure supplies are available to those in need. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Tech Sgt. Chelsea Smith) (Photo Credit: Tech. Sgt. Chelsea Smith)VIEW ORIGINAL[Link] 2 / 6Show Caption +Hide Caption -Soldiers from the Florida and South Carolina National Guard search for residents needing assistance near Stuart, Florida, Oct. 10, 2024. (Photo Credit: Courtesy)VIEW ORIGINAL[Link] 3 / 6Show Caption +Hide Caption -Soldiers from 151st Combat Engineer Company and 881st Engineer Support Company, part of Joint Task Force - North Carolina, complete a search and rescue mission in support of Hurricane Helene relief in Western North Carolina. (Photo Credit: Courtesy)VIEW ORIGINAL[Link] 4 / 6Show Caption +Hide Caption -Florida National Guard Soldiers evacuate citizens from flooded areas in a high-water vehicle. (Photo Credit: Courtesy)VIEW ORIGINAL[Link] 5 / 6Show Caption +Hide Caption -A Florida National Guard Soldier saves a dog after rescuing the dog's owner, who was succumbing to hypothermia due to rising waters in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton. (Photo Credit: Courtesy)VIEW ORIGINAL[Link] 6 / 6Show Caption +Hide Caption -Florida Army National Guard Soldiers with the 1-111th General Support Aviation Battalion conduct flight operations in Florida amid Hurricane Milton response efforts Oct. 10, 2024. (Photo Credit: Courtesy)VIEW ORIGINAL
ARLINGTON, Va. - Over 10,800 National Guard Soldiers and Airmen were conducting Hurricane Milton and Hurricane Helene relief missions in the Southeast Saturday, helping first responders and victims by air, land and water.
Disaster relief operations were centered in the hardest-hit areas of Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee. Guard assistance also continued in Virginia.
As of Saturday, over 7,100 Guardsmen from more than a dozen states were mobilized in response to the severe damage caused by Hurricane Milton, which made landfall in Florida Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane. They rescued hundreds of people threatened by flooding, cleared roads, distributed food, water and other vital supplies, provided security and directed traffic. Resources included 19 helicopters, over 500 high-water vehicles and 13 boats.
More than 3,700 Guard members from a dozen states supported state and local authorities responding to damages caused by Hurricane Helene, which made landfall in Florida Oct. 26 as a Category 4 storm. Using helicopters, boats and high-water vehicles, they rescued people stranded by flooding and high and swift water. Guardsmen also cleared debris from roads and distributed critical supplies.
Maj. Gen. Ronald Win Burkett II, National Guard Bureau director of domestic operations and force development, said there was "incredible coordination and really some Herculean efforts" by the National Guard and federal, state and local authorities.
He told reporters at a National Guard Bureau media roundtable Friday that well over 755 people were rescued in North Carolina alone - 219 by hoist to hovering helicopters. More than 1,200 people were evacuated from flooded areas to safer ground.
Col. Blake Heidelberg, director of military support, Florida National Guard, told reporters 330 people had been rescued in Florida as of Friday afternoon. He said the Florida Guard would continue operations in the state for at least a week while power was restored.
"We're tired. I'm not going to lie," he said. "We're worn down and we'd like a break."
Heidelberg said the Florida National Guard could not have been as effective without the assistance of Guard units from so many other states. That help came as part of the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, the nation's state-to-state mutual aid agreement. EMAC matches personnel, equipment and commodities to assist response and recovery efforts across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.
North Carolina Guardsmen were on duty there, clearing debris, distributing supplies and searching and rescuing people.
In Tennessee, hundreds of Guardsmen cleared roads of debris and conducted search and rescue and damage assessment flights.
Georgia deployed hundreds of Guardsmen to assist with the response there.
And South Carolina Guardsmen assisted first responders in that state.