MOFFETT AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Calif. - Hundreds of National Guard members are now involved in multiple air and ground firefighting efforts as wildfires rage across the Los Angeles Basin and Southern California.
As of Monday morning, more than 1,850 Guard members from California, Nevada and Wyoming were activated.
Mutliple C-130 Hercules aircraft equipped with Modular Aerial Fire Fighting Systems are in the air. The MAFFS-equipped aircraft, which drop fire retardant from the air, are from the Air National Guard’s 146th Airlift Wing in California, 152nd Airlift Wing and 192nd Airlift Squadron in Nevada, 153rd Airlift Wing and 187th Airlift Squadron in Wyoming, and the 302nd Airlift Wing and 731st Airlift Squadron, U.S. Air Force Reserve units based in Colorado Springs.
The California Guard also activated two ground firefighting teams and four military police companies to assist local law enforcement and emergency response.
Additional Cal Guard military hand crews joined the firefighting efforts in Southern California. These hand crews, alongside military police, aircrews flying helicopters and the C-130 aircraft, are supporting interagency partners under the direction of CAL FIRE and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
Guard members assisting on the ground include members of the 330th Military Police Company and the 40th Military Police Company, 49th Military Police Brigade. They are working with local law enforcement to maintain order and support communities affected by the wildfires.
“U.S. Northern Command immediately took action as we watched and learned more about the fires in the Los Angeles area,” said U.S. Air Force Gen. Gregory Guillot, commander of U.S. Northern Command. “Providing support to civil authorities is a valued part of our homeland defense mission. We’re well-practiced and in position to support the Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Interagency Firefighting Center, and the state of California to assist the many citizens in need.“
March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County is supporting disaster operations as the forward distribution hub for supplies and equipment.
Additionally, if requested, U.S. Northern Command is prepared to provide rotary wing support, ground and air search and rescue, commodity distribution, emergency route clearance, incident awareness and assessment, and medical capabilities.
“Our hearts go out to the people of California impacted by these devastating wildfires," said Gen. Steve Nordhaus, chief of the National Guard Bureau. "Helping communities in need is a core National Guard mission, and we are incredibly proud of the men and women who, as they always have, answered the call to duty to work alongside first responders and emergency managers and all of our partners at the local, state and national levels."
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Matthew Olay, DOD News, the California National Guard and United States Northern Command Public Affairs contributed to this story.