RICHMOND, Ky. (LEX 18) — Colonel Josh Futrell knows exactly what his National Guardsmen and women are about to experience.
“2005 it was. We went down for Hurricane Katrina,” the Colonel said before his troops began a 19-hour trip to the same region to assist with the relief effort from Hurricane Ida. The storm last weekend caused comparable damage, even if it didn’t pack the exact same punch as Katrina did 16 years ago.
The men and women of the 617th Military Police branch of Kentucky’s National Guard loaded up the trucks and began the 747 mile journey to New Orleans on Friday at noon. They’ll be deployed for 25 days, but what exactly they’ll be doing in the region remains unknown.
“Maybe it’s helping support traffic? Could be helping support some of the sites,” Captain Stephen Tindall wondered. “Really, as soldiers- military police soldiers, we’re really capable of helping with the flow of traffic and really helping the community.”
The latter is why they joined The Guard in the first place.
“They’re teachers, they’re postal service (employees), so many occupations but ultimately they come to support that mission,” Captain Tindall added.
Captain Tindall knows this unit will do whatever is needed, and complete the tasks at hand.
“When I received the call that our unit was going to be tasked to support this mission, I knew I had the right team.”
Soon, New Orleans will know that as well.
