SLS 22RS-723 ORIGINAL
2022 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 89
BY SENATORS MILLIGAN, BOUDREAUX, CATHEY, FOIL, REESE AND TARVER
COMMENDATIONS. Commends the Louisiana National Guard on its exemplary service
to the state during the last two years in an unprecedented time of natural disasters.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To commend the Louisiana National Guard on its exemplary service to the state during the
3 last two years in an unprecedented time of natural disasters.
4 WHEREAS, during these tumultuous years, the Louisiana National Guard has
5 performed exemplary work and displayed tremendous dedication through its efforts to
6 protect the lives and welfare of Louisianians; and
7 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard fulfills its federal and state missions in
8 concert with a wide variety of statewide organizations; and
9 WHEREAS, by air, by land, and by water, the Louisiana National Guard knows what
10 to do in any emergency and it all begins with working as a team; and
11 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard has supported the response to the
12 pandemic since Covid-19's first known case, March 2020; and
13 WHEREAS, more than nine hundred soldiers and airmen of the Louisiana National
14 Guard remain activated in response to Covid-19; and
15 WHEREAS, due to the efforts of the Guard, more than four hundred ninety-seven
16 three hundred fifty-two individuals were tested at twenty-three test sites statewide, two
17 million three hundred forty-one thousand seven hundred ninety-five food boxes were
18 distributed, sixty-one million nine hundred thousand items of personal protective equipment
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1 (PPE) were delivered, and one hundred ninety thousand two hundred ninety-eight shots were
2 administered; and
3 WHEREAS, through five waves of the pandemic, the soldiers and airmen of the
4 Louisiana National Guard have developed new skills that have better prepared the Louisiana
5 National Guard for future pandemics; and
6 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard stretched itself in every direction,
7 supporting all missions including food and water distribution, transportation,
8 communication, public works, engineering, emergency management, mass care, emergency
9 assistance, logistics management, COVID-19 testing, public safety, security, traffic control,
10 generators, power supply, and food bank operations; and
11 WHEREAS, Hurricane Laura came ashore in south Louisiana August 27, 2020, as
12 a Category 4, causing catastrophic flooding and damage; and
13 WHEREAS, more than six thousand two hundred Louisiana National Guard
14 members were deployed, using two hundred thirty-six high water vehicles, seventy-six boats,
15 and seventeen helicopters to support hurricane rescue efforts, in addition to over a dozen
16 engineering teams trained to help move debris and clear roads; and
17 WHEREAS, the Guard helped evacuate more than three hundred fifty-eight people
18 and twenty-nine pets from affected areas; and
19 WHEREAS, after Hurricane Laura, the Louisiana National Guard distributed more
20 than five million meals-ready-to-eat, over seven million liters of water, more than one
21 million bags of ice, and nearly two hundred thousand tarps to victims of the storm; and
22 WHEREAS, Hurricane Ida came ashore in south Louisiana August 29, 2021, as a
23 Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 150 mph and heavy rainfall, causing catastrophic
24 flooding and damage; and
25 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard conducted search and rescue sweeps
26 across thirty-one parishes, rescuing more than three hundred ninety-seven people and
27 sixty-five pets by the Wednesday after the hurricane and clearing 403 miles of routes
28 clogged with debris; and
29 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard distributed almost seven million MREs
30 and almost eight million of water, over one million three hundred thousand bags of ice, over
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1 three hundred thousand tarps, and over four hundred generators; and
2 WHEREAS, Guardsmen opened seventeen locations to distribute food and water to
3 people in need in nine parishes, with plans to operate forty; and
4 WHEREAS, another four hundred guard members were assisting law enforcement
5 with security in New Orleans and six parishes; and
6 WHEREAS, about four thousand three hundred members of the Louisiana National
7 Guard were assisting with relief efforts; and
8 WHEREAS, more than one thousand two hundred members of the Louisiana
9 National Guard helped clear roads and handled logistical support in response to the winter
10 storm in 2021; and
11 WHEREAS, using four engineer assessment teams and four engineer work teams,
12 the Louisiana National Guard assessed one hundred thirty-seven miles of road while clearing
13 one hundred eleven miles of snow and debris from roads in three parishes; and
14 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard also provided seven wreckers to help
15 Louisiana State Police and state transportation officials clear Interstate 20, moving two
16 hundred sixty disabled commercial vehicles; and
17 WHEREAS, the Guard also distributed over one million two hundred thousand
18 one-liter bottles of water to people in parishes affected by the storm and over four hundred
19 thousand gallons of bulk water to hospitals and other medical centers; and
20 WHEREAS, the Guard provided thirteen generators to six parishes to assist with
21 water systems; and
22 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard responded to flooding throughout the
23 state following multiple days of steady rain beginning in May of 2021; and
24 WHEREAS, at the height of the response, the Louisiana National Guard had three
25 hundred ninety-three Guard members activated to support various missions, including search
26 and rescue, engineering, and aerial reconnaissance; and
27 WHEREAS, using as many as seventy-nine high-water vehicles and nineteen boats,
28 Guardsmen rescued twenty-five people and two pets in Lake Charles; and
29 WHEREAS, engineer assessment teams worked with local and state officials to
30 determine the specific needs of communities to combat rising flood waters, while teams in
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1 multiple locations installed three thousand three hundred fifty feet of Tiger Dam, as a series
2 of water-filed tubes that create a barrier to mitigate flooding; and
3 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard confronted a demanding series of events
4 with multiple challenges and missions at home and abroad; and
5 WHEREAS, Guardsmen deployed overseas and to other states during the past few
6 years, responded to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and other emergencies and
7 participated in several significant events; and
8 WHEREAS, the tireless professionalism of our soldiers and airmen in supporting the
9 state's initial response to the COVID-19 crisis and responding to the devastation of several
10 hurricanes, including but not limited to hurricanes Laura and Ida, demonstrate the
11 immeasurable value of the men and women of the Louisiana National Guard; and
12 WHEREAS, the Louisiana National Guard continues to live up to its promise of
13 "Always Ready, Always There".
14 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
15 does hereby commend the Louisiana National Guard on its exemplary service to the state
16 during the last two years in an unprecedented time of natural disaster.
17 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
18 Major General Keith Waddell of the Louisiana National Guard.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by James Benton.
DIGEST
SR 89 Original 2022 Regular Session Milligan
Commends the Louisiana National Guard on its exemplary service to the state during the last
two years in an unprecedented time of natural disasters.
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