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 | Jan. 7, 2009

Washington Guard mobilized for snow removal

By National Guard Bureau

ARLINGTON, Va., - More than 400 members of the Washington National Guard are currently on state active duty performing recovery operations throughout the state as a result of recent heavy snow and rainfall in the region.

Previous heavy snowfall combined with on-going heavy rainfall this week has caused flooding conditions throughout the state.

As a result, Army and Air National Guard members are spreading throughout the state to assist local authorities.

"We have a two-front battle - Eastern Washington and Western Washington," said 1st Lt. Keith Kosik, the Washington National Guard public affairs officer. 

In Eastern Washington, Spokane is the center of gravity. In Western Washington, the rains and subsequent flooding have been reported in the Puget Sound region.

"If I were to map it out for you (where Guard personnel are responding), there would be red dots all over the place," he said.

And the Guard is responding to a variety of missions in those areas.

"In Western Washington, our missions tend to focus on staffing traffic control points, using high-water vehicles to evacuate people, move supplies and conduct door-to-door health and welfare checks," said Kosik, who added that in the eastern part of the state, most of the missions involve snow removal.

According to reports, about one-third of the Guardsmen are in Western Washington, including the 96th Troop Command, the 66th Aviation and the 116th Regional Operations Center. They helped to deliver 15,000 sandbags and a water pump to Raymond, Wash., 20,000 sandbags to Snohomish Public Works and 10 pallets of water to two local fire departments.

Soldiers from the 116th also conducted house-to-house health and welfare checks and manned traffic control points at State Route 7 near Elbe, Wash., and the State Route 7 bypass in Lewis County. 

A Rapid Response Force package from the Army Guard also assisted the Eastside Fire and Rescue Station in Carnation, Wash., with evacuation missions and transporting supplies.

About 150 Air Guard members from the 141st Air Refueling Wing, the 242nd Combat Communications Squadron and the 256th Combat Communications Squadron continued their snow removal efforts in Eastern Washington.

Despite the hectic pace, the Guard’s initial planning paid off. "We were in the game really early and have responded well," said Kosik.

Kosik said most snow removal operations will be complete by today with Guard members staying on duty through the weekend.

 

 

Related Articles
Group photo for the Information Operations Subject Matter Exchange during the opening ceremony of Tiger Balm 2025 on May 5 2025 at Mandai Hill, Singapore.
Washington Guard, Singapore Team Up for Tiger Balm 2025
By Joseph Siemandel, | May 30, 2025
SINGAPORE – Washington Army National Guardsmen traveled to Mandai Hill, Singapore, this month to participate in exercise Tiger Balm 2025. It was the 44th iteration of the bilateral exercise between the Singapore Army Forces...

Soldiers from the 138th Operational Fires Command integrate with 41st Field Artillery Brigade and U.S. Army V Corps during Command Post Exercise hosted in both Fort Knox, Kentucky, and Camp Kosciusko, Poland, early May 2025.
Kentucky Army Guard Completes Exercise with V Corps
By Capt. Cody Stagner, | May 30, 2025
POZNAN, Poland — Soldiers from the 138th Operational Fires Command (OFC), Kentucky Army National Guard, recently participated in a corps-level Command Post Exercise (CPX) with U.S. Army V Corps, held in early May at both Fort...

U.S. Air Force Capt. Isaac Tian, a cyber operations officer with the 262nd Cyber Operations Squadron, Washington Air National Guard, analyzes data for evidence of adversary indicators of compromise on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., April 6, 2025. Tian is among the first Air National Guard members to be selected under a newly established direct commission program for cyber professionals.
Washington Airman Selected for Direct Commission in Cyber
By Airman 1st Class Jordaan Kvale, | May 30, 2025
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Washington – Capt. Isaac Tian, a cyber operations officer with the 262nd Cyber Operations Squadron, is among the first Air National Guard members selected under a newly established direct commission...