An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | Aug. 28, 2006

Hurricane Katrina: National Guard's Finest Hour

By National Guard Bureau

ARLINGTON, Va. - When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast one year ago, it triggered the largest and fastest disaster response in the National Guard's 369-year history.

At a July NAACP event, Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, recalled rallying the support of adjutants general of 54 states and territories, who quickly provided troops and equipment.

"They kept sending it until [we] said stop," Blum told the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. "Nobody asked how are we being paid [or] how long we're going to be there. That's why I'm proud to be the chief of the National Guard Bureau. I don't think there is a finer organization wearing the uniform of this nation."

Within four hours of the storm, troops were in the water, on the streets and in the air saving lives, and the National Guard would be lauded in congressional hearings as the most organized, well-prepared agency responding to the disaster.

In an operation resembling the Berlin Airlift, 58,000 National Guard Citizen-Soldiers and Airmen poured into the stricken area, more than three times the number of Guard members deployed to any previous natural disaster.

All this while 79,000 Guard were in federal service for the war on terrorism.

Every state in the union and every territory contributed to the National Guard's response to Hurricane Katrina. "There is not a single National Guard entity that did not make a contribution," Blum told congressional investigators. "When you called out the Guard for Katrina, you called out all of America."

The National Guard had more than three times as many troops on the ground as all other services combined, and those troops rescued more than 17,000 people and evacuated 70,000. The Air National Guard evacuated more than 2,500 people with medical needs, treated more than 8,000 patients in expeditionary medical support facilities and flew 3,350 sorties.

The National Guard response to the storm came in a year in which more Citizen-Soldiers were deployed to more places for longer periods than during any year since World War II.

"This was our finest hour," Blum has said of the hurricane response.

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Air Force Chief Warrant Officer 2 Robert Peck, officer of information technology with 242nd Combat Communications Squadron, Washington Air National Guard, operates a small unmanned aircraft system during Exercise Phoenix Dawn 2025 at Saylor Creek Range near Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, May 6, 2025. The 194th Wing's inaugural class of Warrant Officers are paving the way by re-establishing the role in the Air Force and setting standards for future generations.
Washington Air Guard’s Warrant Officers Pave Way
By Airman 1st Class Jordaan Kvale, | May 29, 2025
CAMP MURRAY, Washington – The 194th Wing’s warrant officers are not only breaking new ground — they’re laying the foundation for generations to come.For the first time in more than 65 years, the Air Force reintroduced warrant...

Airmen with the Washington Air National Guard and the Royal Thai Air Force work alongside their RTAF counterparts in small groups to finalize their respective training objectives at the Enduring Partners 2025 final planning conference in Spokane, Wash., May 20, 2025. The working groups focused on areas such as air operations, ground-controlled interception, Air Force Special Warfare, cyber, combat communication, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief medical logistics, intel, and space.
Royal Thai Air Force, Washington Guard Finalize Plans for Enduring Partners 2025
By Staff Sgt. Adeline Witherspoon, | May 29, 2025
SPOKANE, Wash. – Airmen with the Washington Air National Guard and the Royal Thai Air Force assembled in western Washington May 19-24 to finalize plans for Enduring Partners 2025, an exercise involving RTAF and the Washington...

Maj. Gen. Thomas Friloux, adjutant general of Louisiana, discusses briefing details with Col. Augusto Villalaz, director of the Joint Staff for the Louisiana National Guard, during the annual Hurricane Rehearsal of Concept (ROC) Drill at the Armed Forces Reserve Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, May 21, 2025. The drill helps synchronize plans and strengthen coordination across LANG’s senior leadership ahead of hurricane season.
Louisiana Guard Rehearses Emergency Plans for Hurricane Season
By Capt. Peter Drasutis, | May 28, 2025
NEW ORLEANS – The Louisiana National Guard conducted its annual Hurricane Rehearsal of Concept (ROC) Drill at the Armed Forces Reserve Center in Baton Rouge May 21, uniting key personnel across multiple commands to refine...