The Military Responds

As of yesterday here are is the military response for the Hurricane Katrina disaster:

• Defense Coordinating Officers and Defense Coordinating Elements, known as DCEs, are on site in Clanton, Ala., Baton Rouge, La., and Jackson, Miss., to liaison between U.S. Northern Command, FEMA and the Department of Defense.

• Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., Naval Air Station Meridian, Miss., Barksdale Air Force Base, La., Alexandria, La., and Ft. Polk, La., have been designated as federal operational staging areas to expedite the movement of relief supplies and emergency personnel to affected areas.

• U.S. Transportation Command is flying 8 swift water rescue teams from Calfornia to Lafayette, La. These California-based teams provide about 14 personnel with vehicles and small rigid hulled boats who are highly trained and capable of rescuing stranded citizens from flooded areas.

• The hospital ship, USNS Comfort, is departing Baltimore to bring its medical assistance to the Gulf region. The Comfort should reach the area in seven days, officials said.

• Three Army helicopters from III Corps at Fort Hood, Texas, are in Baton Rouge and two more in Mississippi to assist with search and rescue and damage assessment.

• USNORTHCOM established Joint Task Force Katrina to be the military’s on-scene commander in support of FEMA. Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré, commander of First Army at Fort Gillem, Ga., is the JTF commander. JTF-Katrina will be based out of Camp Shelby, Miss.

• JTF-Civil Support is providing a joint planning augmentation cell.

• U.S. Northern Command’s Joint Operations Center is on 24-hour duty in Colorado Springs, Colo., to facilitate any additional requests for assistance that may come from FEMA representatives.