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 | May 27, 2011

Wicked weather: The National Guard responds

By American Forces Press Service Cheryl Pellerin

WASHINGTON - More than 3,400 men and women of the National Guard are on the ground in seven states helping communities damaged by deadly tornadoes and floods, Army Maj. Gen. David L. Harris said Thursday.

Harris, director of domestic operations and force development for the National Guard Bureau, spoke in a joint interview with the Pentagon Channel and American Forces Press Service.

The states include Alabama, Arkansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, Harris said.

Guard members are working with local and state officials, police and emergency responders in Joplin, Mo., he said, where a powerful tornado struck Sunday, causing at least 125 deaths, more than 750 injuries and damage to homes and businesses.

The National Guard Citizen-Soldiers there are working in the life-saving phase, which Harris said lasts 72 to 96 hours before they transition to the recovery phase.

Soldiers are searching debris for survivors, working with local law enforcement to provide security, going house to house doing wellness checks of people who have no power, water or gas.

"We know that there are many still unaccounted for and our hearts go out to the community," Harris said. "It just couldn't be any harder than not knowing the status of a loved one." In Joplin, he added, the roof was torn off the National Guard Armory.

The armory is without power and gas, "but we're still using it to help in the response," Harris said, "providing temporary communications out of that position. So it's still a part of the community and still working quite aggressively."

It's been a while "since we've had this type of and this much damage at once," he added. " … I'm sure this is catching a lot of people off guard."

Earlier this year the Guard supported Texas during a severe outbreak of wildfires, Harris said.

Three mobile air fire-fighting systems – C-130 Hercules military transport aircrafts with devices inside to disperse fire retardant – spent a month there to get the fires under control.

"I think at one point they said all but two counties in Texas had something on fire," the general said.

The Guard also helped in eight states recently flooded by an overflowing Mississippi River. North Dakota still has Soldiers watching levees and [working on] temporary dams and sandbagging operations there," Harris said.

South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois all had fairly significant flood responses this year, he added.

In Missouri, the Guard was involved in evacuating people from flood zones along the Mississippi and working the levees there, and helping with flooding in Tennessee and Kentucky.

In Louisiana, where the Mississippi begins flowing into the Gulf of Mexico, 1,100 Citizen-Soldiers are working with the Army Corps of Engineers to check levees, doing regular inspections and repairs, Harris said.

Those who manage the National Guard soldiers are staying vigilant through the spring, the general said.

"With record amounts of winter snowfall in the north and the west, everybody is watching the rivers and hoping that we don't get rain on top of a good thaw because that would make the situation worse," he said, noting that hurricane season quickly follows spring.

"We go from floods to wildfires to hurricanes to snow and ice, Harris said. "We get a short break – and then we start again."

 

 

Related Articles
A U.S. Air Force aircrew flight equipment specialist participates in chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) decontamination training during exercise Toxic Peach at the 165th Airlift Wing, Savannah Air National Guard Base, Georgia, April 29, 2025. Hosted by the Georgia Air National Guard’s 165th Airlift Wing, exercise Toxic Peach 2025 readied approximately 150 joint service military members to complete large-scale CBRN decontamination of aircrews in a simulated austere environment.
Georgia's 165th Airlift Wing Hosts Response Exercise TOXIC PEACH 2025
By Senior Airman Victoria Coursey, | May 6, 2025
SAVANNAH, Ga. — About 150 joint service military members, including Airmen and Soldiers from more than 36 different units and seven major commands, recently conducted exercise Toxic Peach.  The April 28–May 2 exercise at the...

A Vietnam veteran renders a salute from his wheelchair as he passes through the honor corridor at the Medford Airport, Medford, Ore., May 4, 2025. Oregon Army National Guard soldiers and Patriot Guard Riders formed the corridor to welcome veterans returning from an Honor Flight trip to Washington, D.C., where they visited military memorials honoring their service.
Oregon National Guard Soldiers Welcome Veterans Home from Honor Flight
By Maj. Wayne Clyne, | May 6, 2025
MEDFORD, Ore. – Soldiers from the Oregon Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 186th Infantry Regiment formed up at the Medford Airport on May 4 to welcome home veterans returning from an Honor Flight to Washington, D.C. The...

U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Rafaela Laguillo, a radio transmissions journeyman with the 156th Combat Communications Squadron, Puerto Rico Air National Guard, sets-up a GATOR ball antenna during a Full Operating Capability (FOC) evaluation at Punta Salinas Air National Guard Station, Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, April 24, 2025. A team of approximately 25 Airmen assigned to the 156th CBCS was evaluated on their level of proficiency in providing NIPR, SIPR, and VOIP services in an expeditionary setting as part of the FOC certification process.
Puerto Rico Air Guard Tests Flexible Communications in Evaluation
By Senior Airman Victoria Jewett, | May 6, 2025
PUNTA SALINAS AIR NATIONAL GUARD STATION, Puerto Rico — U.S. Airmen assigned to the Puerto Rico Air National Guard’s 156th Combat Communications Squadron deployed two Flexible Communication Packages as part of their Full...