Mobilians deployed with Alabama National Guard combat Coronavirus in hometown

Photo By Staff Sgt. Jaccob Hearn | (MOBILE, Ala) - Sgt. Seth Jahnke, a disinfection team leader for Task Force 31, speaks with the Director of Nursing at Springhill Rehabilitation and Residence during a site survey on May 12, 2020. Tours of facilities are part of a collaborative effort with staff and Task Force 31 before disinfection operations start. (Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Jaccob Hearn)  

MOBILE, AL, UNITED STATES

05.20.2020

Story by Sgt. Jaccob Hearn 

131st Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

(MOBILE, Ala.) - Since April, Task Force 31, a joint effort between the Alabama Air and Army National Guard, has been fighting against the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the state.
With numbers continuing to rise in the city, the Mobile natives (Mobilians) who have been called to active duty are taking the fight personally.
"I joined [the National Guard] specifically to help my community," said Mobile native Spc. Phillip Melancon, a chemical biological radiological and nuclear (CBRN) specialist with the 690th CBRN Company. As part of Alabama’s COVID-19 response, Melancon has been assigned to Task Force 31 on a disinfection team.
"It's been very bad in some of the facilities we've been to but we've seen so much support; not just in Mobile but every community, you can tell everyone is working together to fight this thing."
Task Force 31 teams four, five, and six are stationed at Ft. Whiting in Mobile and a large portion of the teams are made up of Mobilians. They are responsible for the southern area of Alabama. The teams disinfect long-term care facilities, provide education, and do whatever is required to help mitigate the threat of COVID-19.
Although Mobile is not their sole focus, they have disinfected approximately seven Mobile-area facilities in the city with more scheduled.
Lana Davis, the administrator for Springhill Rehabilitation & Senior Residence, said it was comforting knowing that there were Mobilians on the team that disinfected her facility.
"They were so humble to be here," Davis said. "They were here to protect us and you can tell they wanted to be here."
Care facilities coordinate through the Alabama Nursing Home Association to request Task Force 31’s aid. Just because a facility receives aid does not mean they have confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Another Mobile native, Spc. Godfrey Gildersleeve, also a CBRN specialist with the 690th CBRN Company working with Task Force 31 on a disinfection team, said this is what he has been training for.
"My late grandparents used to stay in one of the facilities we went to," said Gildersleeve. "When I was there, I knew that my training really had a purpose."
Jenny Duwitt, the director of nurses at Springhill Rehabilitation & Senior Residence, said, "We appreciate them coming and the system they had in place was outstanding.
"I could tell by watching that everyone knew what they were supposed to do and were well trained."
A spokeswoman for Crowne Health Care of Mobile, Frances Coleman, had similar remarks.
“This is what they do, their specialty,” she said. “We are so grateful to have them here.”
Throughout the U.S., more than 46,000 Air and Army National Guard professionals are supporting COVID-19 response missions at the direction of their governors.
“The National Guard is the nation's first military response force in times of domestic crisis,” said Gen. Joseph Lengyel, chief of the National Guard Bureau. “Whether it’s helping people do testing or helping people with awareness… the National Guard can help the nation deal with this crisis.”
As Alabama begins to reopen, the Alabama National Guard will continue to focus on COVID-19 relief efforts.
"I hope people continue to do their best to social distance and do the right thing,” Melancon said. “It's stringent and monotonous but we need to do it for the people who can't do it.
“Things are tough but one day they will get better."

• Date Taken: 05.20.2020
• Date Posted: 05.21.2020 15:39
• Story ID: 370571
• Location: MOBILE, AL, US