St. Cloud Guard Unit Deployed to Help Fight Wildfires

(KNSI) – A group of soldiers based in St. Cloud are headed to the western United States to help battle raging wildfires.

The Minnesota National Guard’s St. Cloud-based C Company, 2-211 General Support Aviation Battalion will send a UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter with hoist plus ten soldiers to Washington to provide medivac support to firefighters on the ground and provide aerial fire suppression.

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources has requested Minnesota National Guard Support for a minimum of two weeks. The soldiers are expected to arrive Saturday.

The authorization follows a request from Washington officials through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC). The assistance is authorized via Emergency Executive Order 21-28.

“Wildfires continue to put our fellow Americans’ lives at risk, and when disaster hits, Minnesotans have always stepped up to help out their neighbors. We continue to battle our own wildfires here in Minnesota, but we have the resources needed to manage those, and we are in a strong position to step up and help our fellow states,” said Governor Walz. “I am proud that the Minnesota National Guard has answered this call to serve. These soldiers’ support will be critical to ensuring the safety of Washington residents during this harrowing time.”

___