Photo By Avery Schneider | Army National Guard Spc. Matthew Porter, assigned to D Company, 427th Brigade Support...... read more read more
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BUFFALO, N.Y. — With the help of the New York National Guard, more than 10,000 residents of Western New York have been tested for the COVID-19 virus and its antibodies since April 29.
The Guardsmen supporting the test sites are accustomed to disaster response missions, but the coronavirus mission has many of them working outside their traditional roles or skills.
As a mechanic for Delta Company, 427th Brigade Support Battalion, Spc. Matthew Porter is used to life in a motor pool, handling generators and tools. Instead, at a COVID-19 antibody test site, he has his hands on paperwork and iPads.
“This is a very clean, controlled environment,” Porter explained. “A lot less grease.”
Since May 3, Porter has been assigned to the SUNY Erie Community College gymnasium in Williamsville, New York. It is one of five sites statewide which have conducted a total of more than 5,000 antibody tests.
The gym’s open courts make an ideal setting for social distancing. Painters tape X’s and sports netting help Soldiers and medical staff from the New York State Department of Health direct the flow of visitors and keep them six feet apart.
When the site opened, its first few days were dedicated to testing members of the New York State Police and their civilian employees. It has since expanded to other state agencies and employees of local grocery stores.
Each individual is greeted at the door by a Guardsman who gives an overview of the process: an explanation of testing and collection of personal information, data entry into an iPad and, finally, a few drops of blood taken with a finger prick – just enough to cover a small circle on a sample strip.
Guardsmen like Porter handle the first two steps, collecting and entering data. Even though it’s not the type of job he’s used to, Porter has been willing to adapt and proud to support the mission.
“This is what we do as a National Guard. We were established to help fellow citizens and help each other. If we’re not doing this, we don’t succeed in our mission,” Porter said.
At other sites in Western New York, testing and support from the Guard runs differently.
In large parking lots in downtown Buffalo, at Monroe Community College in Rochester, and at Niagara Community College in Sanborn, residents navigate their vehicles through lanes of traffic cones to large tents where civilian nurses conduct nasal swab tests for COVID-19. These are just three of 15 drive-through test sites across the state where New York National Guardsmen are tasked with support.
Between the entry point and the tent, Soldiers and Airmen paired up with civilian support staff communicate with the residents. Through closed windows they confirm appointments, check for first responder status, and collect information for the screening process.
Pvt. Matthew Klug of Charlie Troop, 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment works the lanes. As an infantryman in a cavalry unit, he is trained to find and fight an enemy he can see. On this mission, he’s helping detect and counter an invisible foe.
Taking part in missions like the response to COVID-19 is part of why he signed up in the first place.
“I joined the National Guard to serve, mainly because I have a son,” Klug explained. “He’s about to be two this year, in June. I wanted to have him look up to his father one day and say, ‘Hey, my dad served. My dad helped out. He made a difference.’”
At the back end of the testing tent, Guardsmen also act as the voice for medical staff working in a restricted ‘hot zone’ where residents are tested. Standing at a safe distance, they ensure the staff have a constant supply of personal protective equipment, and transport coolers filled with completed tests to a refrigerated truck for transport to a state lab.
All the roles Guardsmen play at testing sites are considered critical to the operation.
Klug and Porter are three of the more than 3,500 members of the New York National Guard on duty in the response to COVID-19.
| Date Taken: | 05.18.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 05.18.2020 10:17 |
| Story ID: | 370190 |
| Location: | BUFFALO, NY, US |
| Web Views: | 76 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, At COVID-19 testing sites, New York National Guardsmen play critical role in unusual jobs, by Avery Schneider, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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