241st Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Story by Sgt. Michael Owens

By Sgt. Michael L. Owens
241st Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

NEW ORLEANS – As the 2008 hurricane season reaches its peak, Joint Task Force Gator is assisting New Orleans residents in dealing with stress that comes from hurricane preparedness, evacuation and recovery.

Before, during and now after Hurricane Gustav, Guardmembers work with the city government to evacuate residents, provide security to neighborhoods that were left vacant and now patrol and monitor as residents return home.

As Hurricane Ike, which posed no direct threat to the New Orleans area, passed just southwest of the Louisiana coast, Gator still assisted residents living in low-lying areas of the city.

"Residents need to understand that parts of New Orleans will still receive an ample amount of flood water due to the storm," explained Command Sgt. Maj. Lumus J. St. Julien, Task Force Gator's senior enlisted advisor. "We will do all that we can to ensure the safety of those who live in vulnerable neighborhoods."

"Seeing them [National Guard Soldiers] in the neighborhoods during and after the storm really provides that security blanket that the residents crave," said eastern New Orleans resident Janice P. Smith. "We can almost call them our guardian angels."

The Citizen-Soldiers assigned to Joint Task Force Gator in New Orleans have been helping the New Orleans Police Department and other local law enforcements agencies provide a safe community for the city's residents since June 2006.

Originally ordered to the city for only two weeks, the task force mission has been extended due to requests from New Orleans officials and through continuous support from the community for their presence.

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