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National Guard troops return from relief effort
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by Aubre Andrus and Carolyn Smith
Friday, September 16, 2005
Hundreds of Wisconsin National Guard troops headed back to Wisconsin Thursday after spending two weeks helping with Hurricane Katrina relief operations in Louisiana.
According to Wisconsin Army National Guard Lt. Colonel Tim Donovan, the soldiers' efforts were a success.
"I was down there myself for a short time and I thought the morale was high," Donovan said. "I think some of them wanted to stay and do more to help out. They didn't want to leave quite yet."
About 50 troops, mostly soldiers from the aviation division, and five Air National Guard helicopters will remain in New Orleans to continue helping during the crisis, Donovan said.
The soldiers were sent during the "critical crisis-management phase" of the relief operations and completed search-and-rescue missions, rescuing more than 130 people, Donovan said. Transportation units carried supplies and cargo to areas in need, and military police units provided security in the city.
Gov. Jim Doyle, who called the Wisconsin National Guard into action days after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, said he is proud of their efforts.
"They rescued more than 100 people from their flooded homes, transported hundreds of people to and from the city, and carried in more than three tons of supplies," Doyle said. "Some men and women who were deployed to Louisiana have spent more than a year in Iraq and have been home only a matter of months."
Doyle said he thanks those soldiers for answering the call of duty for the second time.
In total, 12 units of the Wisconsin National Guard dedicated their time and efforts to rescuing hurricane victims and transporting supplies.
The 128th Air Refueling Wing from Milwaukee, which included three KC-135 aircrafts and a dozen crew members, transported 247 passengers and almost 60 short tons of cargo over 10 missions. The crew picked up almost 180 hurricane victims who were evacuated on Sept. 8 from New Orleans and transported them to Milwaukee.
Thirteen pets and 132 people — 59 of them on hoists — were rescued by the 82nd Medical Company, an air ambulance from West Bend that consisted of 30 soldiers and three UH-1 Huey helicopters. The mission, which flew more than 168 hours, also included transporting more than eight tons of cargo and supplies. The unit will continue relief efforts through September.
The 132nd Support Battalion, headquartered in Janesville, provided transportation support. With 187 soldiers and 68 vehicles, including ambulances, a wrecker and 49 cargo trucks, the battalion transported 180 passengers and 140 tons of cargo and supplies while stationed at Zephyr Field, a minor-league baseball park west of downtown New Orleans.
As of Thursday afternoon, about 40 of the soldiers had made it back to Wisconsin and Donovan said he was waiting for more to arrive throughout the night.
"I think the Army and the Air Force National Guard should take a lot of pride in the quality of their work, the timeliness of their response and willingness to provide support to a place that was 900 miles away from home," Donovan said.
