Love this again... Humvees tot he rescue again...how in the heck can these be no longer made??? I am at a lost! LONG LIVE HUMMER!!! Also check out the link to see the video!
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- South Carolina's Snowstorm 2011 may have started with lots of fluffy flakes, but 48 hours later, the winter wonderland is now a hard, frozen mess for drivers. As expected, melted snow refroze in Wednesday's early morning hours, creating a treacherous, slick surface on almost all roads across the Upstate.
A state of emergency remained in effect across South Carolina. Gov. Mark Sanford made that declaration on Monday, allowing the deployment of Army National Guard soldiers, vehicles and equipment to respond wherever needed.
On Tuesday, the National Guard had at least 142 soldiers on active duty, according to the state Emergency Management Division website. Soldiers were operating recovery vehicle teams in support of ongoing traffic response activities and providing transportation support for local first responders, the website said.
By Wednesday, the website reported the Guard's nine wrecker teams supporting Department of Public Safety and SCHP crews across the state overnight were released by morning. Two Humvee teams continued in support of Greenville. At least 25 essential medical personnel had been transported there, the website said. Two Humvee teams were also supporting operations in Pickens County. Three Humvee teams worked overnight in Anderson County, but they were released at 6 a.m., according to the website.
An Army National Guard navigates icy streets in Anderson County on Tuesday.
S.C. Army National Guard Col. Glenn Skawski said, "It really is great from the stand point that we can provide support to the city and to the counties, the local counties because they provide great support to us for our missions that we've done elsewhere."
First responders in Greenville County were also forced to ride behind Department of Transportation crews on Tuesday as they salted and plowed roads so that ambulances could reach emergencies, officials said.
Greenville County Governmental Affairs Coordinator Bob Mihalic said that the county's Emergency Operations Center has requested assistance from the Army National Guard. Humvees are being brought in to transport EMS personnel and critical emergency staff.
Greenville County EMS confirms ambulances cannot travel more than 35 mph with the current road conditions, so response times were unusually slow, Mihalic said on Tuesday.
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Last edited by dwaxman1 on Wed Jan 12, 2011 2:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Staff Sgt. Gerard Brown, a readiness noncommissioned officer with the Georgia Army National Guard, helps Angela Morgan, a registered nurse in Grady Memorial Hospital's labor and delivery department, into a National Guard Humvee. Brown is part of the National Guard teams working to help transport snowbound Grady staff to the hospital.
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Jan. 11, 2011) -- In response to the winter storm blanketing most of the Southeast, 337 National Guard members were on state active duty Jan. 11 to support relief operations.
The governors of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee have declared states of emergency and activated members of their National Guard.
The Alabama National Guard has activated 136 Soldiers who are supporting about 20 missions throughout the state. They are providing vehicle support with Humvees, engineering support in the form of road graders, and liaison officers for the State Emergency Operations Center.
The Arkansas National Guard has 24 Soldiers on state active duty conducting safety checks along Interstate 30, and Arkansas has opened the Malvern and Benton armories as shelters for stranded motorists.
The Georgia National Guard has been assisting in transporting snowbound Grady Memorial Hospital staff to the hospital safely despite icy Atlanta roads.
"Since about 2 a.m. Monday, we have been transporting workers from their homes to Grady Memorial," said Spc. Joshua Blevins, a mechanic with the 178th Military Police Company of the 648th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade. "We just want them to get here safe where they can save lives."
The North Carolina National Guard has opened two armories for warming centers and is working with civil authorities to assist stranded motorists.
Twelve Soldiers reported Jan. 9, to armories in Moore, Anson and Richmond Counties in preparation to support local authorities with transportation, recovery, or other missions as required by North Carolina Emergency Management and emergency response officials.
There will be two to three Humvees and four to six Guard members in each location to assist in operations. Additional Soldiers will be on duty to maintain armories for the Humvee teams.
The Humvee teams are from the 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team and 130th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade. The Guard members will stay on duty dependent on need, but Soldiers are preparing to stay on duty for several days.
According to the Rock Hill, S.C., Herald Online, about three dozen South Carolina Army National Guard Soldiers from the 178th Combat Engineer Battalion were activated to assist the highway patrol in helping motorists throughout area counties, said Maj. Coral Dobson, executive officer of the battalion.
The Soldiers are part of the other 165 Soldiers statewide who have been tasked with their equipment to help with wrecks and clearing roads.
The 178th CEB, which specializes in road construction and other engineering tasks, has several large wreckers normally used for moving its engineering and earthmoving equipment that will be used to augment civilian authorities' equipment during the storm, Dobson said.
An Army National Guard navigates icy streets in Anderson County on Tuesday.