WASHINGTON - Hundreds of National Guardsmen responded over the weekend and today to devastating winter storms in Illinois, Missouri and Kansas, National Guard officials reported.
Missouri has 262 Guardsmen on state active duty, removing debris, providing generator support, health and welfare checks, and transportation support. Highways there are much improved, with a few closed by downed power lines and fallen trees, and 198,800 Missouri residences are still without power, officials said. Missouri has reported seven storm-related fatalities to date.
As of today, Illinois has no Guardsmen on state active duty, officials said. Over the weekend, 73 Army National Guard personnel on drill status provided emergency support coordination and operations.
Four Guardsmen in Kansas are on state active duty today, providing security for an armory that is being used by Fort Scott City Fire Department after the firehouse roof collapsed, officials said. These Guardsmen will continue their operations until tomorrow.
Winter storms hit the Midwest Nov. 30, dumping large amounts of snow from Texas to Michigan. The National Weather Service was not forecasting additional snow or ice in the affected region today, but temperatures were expected to be around freezing and to drop lower overnight.