News Releases for September 2005
September 2, 2005
For further information, please Contact the Governor's Office
Hoeven Deploys National Guard Members To Gulf Region
136th Quartermaster Battalion To Assist With Water Purification
BISMARCK, N.D. - Gov. John Hoeven today, in accordance with the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC), will deploy 25 to 30 members of the 136th Quartermaster Battalion to the Camp Shelby Training Center in Mississippi to assist with disaster relief for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The 119th Fighter Wing of the North Dakota Air National Guard will provide a 100KW generator to the effort.
The National Guard members will bring two Reverse Osmosis Water Purification Units (ROWPU), which are capable of producing 3,000 gallons of pure water per hour and 120,000 gallons per day. The equipment is scheduled to depart Grand Forks on Sunday evening or Monday morning. They will be capable of self-sustaining their operations for 10-15 days operating around the clock to produce drinking water, and will serve in the region between 30 and 60 days.
“North Dakota stands ready to use all the resources at our disposal to help the victims of the Gulf region,” Hoeven said. “We continue to work with EMAC and volunteer organizations like National Voluntary Organizations Active in a Disaster, the Red Cross and others to determine needs and do all we can to assist in this tragic situation.”
Maj. Gen. Michael Haugen said: “The North Dakota National Guard has a unique dual mission of providing forces at both the state and federal levels, and is the only service that abides by two Oaths-of-Office, one to the state constitution and one to the constitution of the United States. We will commit whatever National Guard equipment, soldiers or airmen to the Hurricane Katrina recovery effort that is requested from the states hit with this disaster.”
EMAC is a national mutual aid agreement and partnership that allows state-to-state assistance during gubernatorial or federally declared state emergencies. EMAC provides a responsive and straightforward system for the National Guard and other agencies in unaffected states to send personnel and equipment to help disaster relief efforts in affected states.
The North Dakota National Guard will deploy personnel and critical equipment to the affected states as needs and resources are identified. Guard officials are working through the state’s 24/7 Joint Operations Center (JOC) located at Fraine Barracks in Bismarck.
E-mail comments to the Governor
