National Guard Prepares for Hurricane Florence

By Marine Corps Sgt. David Staten, DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON -- The governors of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Maryland declared a state of emergency yesterday as Hurricane Florence approaches the East Coast. The storm is forecast to make landfall along the Atlantic coast Sept. 13 as a major hurricane.

North Carolina

North Carolina will place 320 National Guardsmen on state active duty to integrate into NC Emergency Management’s disaster response plan, National Guard Bureau officials said. There are 7,000 additional North Carolina guardsmen ready to mobilize when called to state active duty by the governor. The North Carolina National Guard’s first priority is safeguarding the lives and property of its state’s citizens, officials said.

National Guard capabilities to support North Carolina in the aftermath of a hurricane include stranded motorist and flood victim rescue using high-water clearance vehicles, warehouse and supply transport, shelter support, food and water distribution, communications support, road closure support and helicopter aquatic rescue teams, officials said.

South Carolina

As of this morning there were about 2,000 South Carolina Army National Guardsmen on state active duty, as well as about 50 airmen, and they will remain on duty as long as needed, according to Army Lt. Col. Cindi King, the director of public affairs for the South Carolina National Guard.

Immediate missions will include aerial and ground support for the South Carolina Highway Patrol if lane reversals are issued and security and assistance for law enforcement officials.

Virginia

The Virginia National Guard is planning to initially bring up to 1,500 soldiers, airmen and members of the Virginia Defense Force on state active duty for possible assistance with the state’s response operations for Hurricane Florence, according to National Guard Bureau officials. Gov. Ralph Northam has authorized up to 6,000 personnel for response operations and those individuals are alerted and on standby.

Potential missions for the Virginia National Guard include high-water transportation, debris reduction, commodity distribution, shelter management assistance and rotary-wing aviation search and rescue, the officials said.

The Virginia National Guard plans to stage personnel at readiness centers in key locations throughout the commonwealth in order to be ready to rapidly respond if needed, National Guard Bureau officials said. Additional soldiers, airmen and Virginia Defense Force members will be on duty in Richmond and at Fort Pickett to provide mission command, logistics, administrative and public information support.

Maryland

The Maryland National Guard is ready to support the governor, the Maryland Emergency Management Agency and other partner agencies as they prepare for, respond to and recover from the effects of Hurricane Florence, National Guard Bureau officials said. The Joint Operations Center is manned around the clock, and they are in constant contact with MEMA, ready to respond as needed.

"Military organization and training enables unsurpassed capabilities at home in times of large-scale emergency or disaster response,” said Air Force Brig. Gen. Jeffrey W. Burkett, vice director of domestic operations and force development for the National Guard Bureau. “In other words, the experience and education acquired by National Guard personnel significantly benefits the sense of urgency for us to provide our unique capabilities in times of disaster.”

Face of Defense: Army Brothers Bring Civilian Expertise to Mideast Deployment

By Army Capt. Melanie Nelson, U.S. Army Central

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait -- Two brothers deployed here with the Kentucky Army National Guard are able to tap into their professional lives as engineers while serving with the Area Support Group-Kuwait Directorate of Public Works.

Army Capt. William Parker is the project officer for DPW. His brother, Army Staff Sgt. Bryan Parker, serves as DPW's projects noncommissioned officer-in-charge.

They both serve as contract officer representatives, the on-site adviser to government contractors.

The Parker brothers are members of the 613th Engineering Facilities Detachment headquartered in Springfield, Kentucky.

Contract Supervision

The duo are tapping into their civilian engineering backgrounds to supervise contracts, and improve the quality of life for service members deployed here.

"Due to operational requirements, Area Support Group-Kuwait relies on the National Guard and Reserve components to complete its mission," said Army Col. Shannon Nielsen, commander of Area Support Group-Kuwait. "These multi-component soldiers bring a specialized capability to our team."

"It has been a unique opportunity for me to use what I do in the civilian world in order to really do some good," Bryan said. "My civilian employer is Louisville Gas & Electric and Kentucky Utilities in Louisville, Kentucky. I am an environmental engineer within the company's environmental affairs department."

He added, “Being the environmental contract officer representative at DPW allows me to use my knowledge and experience to make an impact on the operations in Kuwait.”

William said his electrical engineering expertise “comes in very handy,” since he’s also the diesel generator contracting officer representative.

“Because of that,” he added, “I am usually given projects that are mostly electrical as my knowledge in electrical theory and standards come in handy to make sure the contractor is delivering the correct products."

The support of their employers back home makes deployments possible. "I get support from the people I work with; a lot of them are veterans themselves," Bryan said. "The company is also supplementing my salary while I've been on orders. This is a huge benefit the company provides, and their support of the National Guard and Reserve is one of the primary reasons I wanted to work there."

Southeastern States Prepare for Hurricane Florence

RICHMOND, Va. -- Emergency preparations have been underway over the weekend in Virginia and other southeastern states in advance of an anticipated strike this week by Hurricane Florence.

Satellite image shows the strong storm dubbed Florence in the Caribbean. Southeastern U.S. states are preparing the storm's arrival later this week.

Virginia Department of Emergency Management teams have worked throughout the weekend preparing for what may be Virginia’s most significant hurricane event in decades. With Virginia under a state of emergency, and forecasts showing Florence zeroing in on the mid-Atlantic, the time for all Virginians to prepare is now, officials said.

The governors of South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia have declared states of emergency. In South Carolina today, about 750 National Guard members were expected on duty. Totals from other states weren’t available as of this morning.

While it is too soon to know the exact track that Hurricane Florence will take, the majority of forecast models are indicating significant potential impacts to Virginia in the form of coastal storm surge, catastrophic inland flooding, high winds and possible widespread power outages.

Virginia emergency managers and first responders are mobilizing to prepare for the storm. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency late Sept. 8 to mobilize personnel and resources for storm impacts and to speed the response to those communities that are damaged by the storm. This includes resources from Virginia Department of Emergency Management, the Virginia Department of Transportation, Virginia State Police, Virginia Department of Health, Virginia National Guard and others.

Hurricane Threats

The largest threat to life from hurricanes is not the high winds, officials said, noting that flooding is the deadliest result of these storms.

Current forecast models indicate that Florence could strike the Carolinas and enter central Virginia, possibly stalling and dropping more than 20 inches of rain in some areas. This will lead to widespread and dangerous flooding, inundation of roads and damaged infrastructure. Potential widespread power outages are also expected.

Residents and visitors should prepare for rising waters, flash flooding and remember to never drive across flooded roadways. Most injuries and deaths occur when motorists try to cross flooded roads. Roads and bridges can be damaged or completely washed away beneath flood waters, and a few inches of water can sweep vehicles downstream.

Some forecast models are indicating a possible strike more directly on the Hampton Roads region and coastal Virginia. If this track becomes a reality, coastal Virginians can expect significant flooding, damaging winds and storm surge flooding throughout the region. If the storm moves on a coastal track, it would require the commonwealth to enact a tiered evacuation plan, commonly known as “Know Your Zone.”

With the onset of tropical storm force winds and rain only a couple of days away, the time to prepare is now, emergency management officials said. They recommended getting homes, businesses and families ready for whatever impacts this storm may bring.