Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today directed the California Emergency
Management Agency and California National Guard to send specialized
assistance to the east coast to help in responding to Hurricane Sandy.
On Monday, the California National Guard sent military transport
aircraft carrying two helicopters and two highly trained Pararescue
teams with their equipment to Charlotte, North Carolina. Aircraft are
also being deployed including a Boeing C17, two C130 aircraft and two
HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters.
A total of 83 personnel will soon be positioned close to the affected
areas for quick deployment. These teams are trained in medical aid,
search and rescue and other emergency response activities.
On Saturday, ten members of California’s Urban Search & Rescue
Incident Support Teams were sent to Virginia and other east coast areas
in support of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requests. This
team included first responders from Riverside, San Diego, Sacramento
City, Sacramento Metro, Los Angeles City and County and Orange County
Fire Departments.
The California Emergency Management Agency is also working with the
California Utilities Emergency Association to deploy utility crews and
equipment as power outages are expected to be widespread.
Requests for assistance from California are coordinated through FEMA and
the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) – a system that
allows states to send personnel, equipment and commodities to help
disaster relief efforts in other states.
