NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration announced Thursday that it is contributing to disaster relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene by deploying hundreds of government employees and tons of resources to battered states down the coast.
“Our dedicated state and local teams, alongside the National Guard, [are] mobilizing to support communities impacted by Hurricane Helene and preparing to assist Florida as Hurricane Milton approaches,” said Hochul. “Together, we are demonstrating our unwavering commitment to help those in need.”
New York State deployed 221 workers from a variety of state and local agencies, the National Guard and three municipalities to help communities in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, while continuing to respond to additional requests for Helene-related assistance.
The National Guard has moved 89 tons of food, water and rescue equipment into the areas, and three heavy lift helicopters were ushered in from the Army Aviation Support Facility in Rochester. Army Special Forces soldiers and two special reconnaissance vehicles were also deployed from Fort Liberty.
Airmen trained to locate the remains of people killed in disaster and respectfully recover them and engineer soldiers who specialize in road building and repair, along with equipment including cranes, front-end loaders and dump trucks, will be deployed.
The assistance was sent as part of the nation’s all-hazards national mutual aid system, the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, and FEMA also deployed members of the New York contingent.
Previously, Hochul send a team of 16 swift water rescue personnel, canines and emergency response equipment, and New York City deployed a 46-member Urban Search and Rescue team and 18-member swift water team, to North Carolina. NYC also sent a 34-member incident management team from the FDNY, and 13 more FDNY members to Tennessee.
The Category 4 hurricane caused mass outages, billions of dollars of destruction and the deaths of over 200 people across the southeast, mere weeks before Hurricane Milton, which is expected to landfall in the Tampa Bay area on Wednesday, barrels toward Florida.
“Let us continue to stand united, offering hope and support as we work to rebuild and recover,” Hochul said.