RALEIGH, N.C. - With Hurricane Irene spinning her way towards the North Carolinian coast, the North Carolina National Guard put in to play an innovative response plan.
Dubbed the “Force Package Concept,” the North Carolina National Guard has pioneered a program which places teams of specialized Soldiers and Airmen ready to deploy to assist in any type of emergency. These Soldiers and Airmen range from experts in communications, power generation, and security.
“The ‘Force Package Concept’ allows us to put the right number of people with the right kinds of skills where they need to be,” said Air Force Lt. Col. Robert Carver, North Carolina National Guard Public Affairs Officer. “It allows a flexible response that can be scaled to the size of the emergency.”
The Force Package for the current emergency contains three different packages: the Multi-Function Force Package (MFFP), Warehousing Logistics Package (WLFP and Branch Command and Control Package (B2CP).
The MFFP is a group of 50 personnel prepared to assist in evacuation operations, provide security to affected areas and assist various state agencies with the distribution of supplies.
The WLFP conducts warehouse operations to support North Carolina Emergency Management’s logistics supply and distribution operations. This 10-person team is able to stand up warehouse operations in any kind of environment and can perform as a supply point for local and state agencies.
Made up of 25 personnel trained to assist in evacuations operations, provide security and assist state agencies with supplies, the Partial Multi-Function Force Package is much like the MFFP in that it coordinates with Emergency Management and assists local law enforcement and first responders. The PMFFP also have heavy-wheeled vehicles and service members who can help clear damaged areas.
The final team, B2CP, establishes and maintains contact with the State Emergency Response Team to provide effective communication with the North Carolina Emergency Management office. They provide emergency communications capabilities and an operations section in support for updated situational awareness.
On top of these basic functional packages, the North Carolina Guard also has a wide variety of assets at their disposal, from rotary wing and engineer support to transportation and logistics.