From:
gov_office@MICHIGAN.GOV [mailto:gov_office@MICHIGAN.GOV]
Sent: Thursday, September 01, 2005
4:25 PM
To: GOV-NL@LISTSERV.MICHIGAN.GOV
Subject: Governor orders troop
deployment
Governor Granholm Announces Additional
National Guard Troop Deployments
Will Assist in Hurricane Relief Efforts in Louisiana,
Mississippi
LANSING –
Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced that additional National Guard
troops from Michigan
are being deployed to assist in the relief efforts underway in the wake of
Hurricane Katrina.
“Michigan stands
ready to assist our fellow citizens in Louisiana
and Mississippi
who are reeling from the impact of this enormous natural disaster,”
Granholm said today. “The men and women of the Michigan National
Guard will be on the frontline of this disaster and lead the way for all
financial and in-kind support that will flow from Michigan in the days and weeks to
come.”
The deployment of 275 soldiers announced today includes:
• Headquarters, 210th MP Battalion (Taylor) (61
soldiers) and the 46th MP Company (Kingsford/Menominee) (182 soldiers) will
deploy in support of the civil authorities of the State of Louisiana. The MP units will report to
England Air Force Base, Alexandria,
Louisiana where they will receive
further instructions and be briefed on their mission.
• The 1434th Quartermaster Water Purification
Detachment (22 soldiers) will deploy to Mississippi
to save human life, alleviate immediate human suffering and/or lessen major
property damage or destruction. The 1434th will report to Camp Shelby, Mississippi
where they will receive further instructions and be briefed on their
mission. A 10-soldier maintenance contact team consisting of wheeled
vehicle mechanics and generator repairers will augment the 1434th for
maintenance support.
The units will report tomorrow to the Michigan Army National
Guard armory in Taylor for inprocessing and will
depart for Mississippi and Louisiana on Sunday.
Today’s announcement follows an earlier commitment to
deploy 182 military police (MPs) from Owosso, Pontiac, and Taylor to Camp Shelby, Mississippi
for law enforcement or security mission.
Two C-130 transport planes from the Selfridge Air National
Guard Base left yesterday with 15 pilots and crew members to assist with an air
evacuation mission to transport patients from a Veterans medical facility to
hospitals in Jackson, Mississippi.
The Michigan National Guard deployments, under the direction
of Adjutant General Tom Cutler, are being made under the Emergency Management
Assistance Compact (EMAC), a national mutual aid and partnership agreement that
allows state-to-state assistance during governor or federally declared state of
emergencies.
EMAC provides a responsive and straightforward system for
the National Guard in unaffected states to send personnel and equipment to help
disaster relief efforts in affected states. When resources are overwhelmed,
National Guard units nationwide can fill the shortfalls.
In addition to ordering deployment of Michigan National
Guard troops, Granholm has declared an energy emergency in Michigan to lift regulations and
restrictions to ease the distribution and availability of gasoline to areas
where it is needed.
The state of Michigan
(through the emergency management division of the Michigan State Police) is in
constant contact with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and will
offer whatever assistance requested at a moments notice. Efforts are
underway to identify private and public resources that can be offered to the
relief effort.
Governor Granholm is encouraging Michigan citizens to donate money to relief
efforts, which represent the most direct and useful way to aid the
victims.
For additional information on disaster relief agencies
accepting contributions, please visit www.michigan.gov .