Texas National Guard relief mission begins drawing down

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CLEVELAND, Texas (AFPN) --  With power coming on throughout the area, Texas National Guardsmen with Task Force-Seguin transferred food and water distribution duties to other task forces and local authorities Oct. 4.

The team returned to their home units and families Oct. 5.

“There are still a few rural areas requiring assistance, and in those cases we’ve handed off responsibility to another National Guard task force,” said Lt. Col. Philip Vaneau, the task force commander.

Task Force-Seguin, which comprises 300 Texas Army and Air National Guardsmen, has been assisting the Federal Emergency Management Agency with food, ice and water distribution in Liberty, Polk and Tyler counties in Texas since Sept. 28. The team has distributed 23,192 meals to residents affected by Hurricane Rita, along with 34,139 bags of ice and almost 40,000 cases of water.

The guardsmen have been staging out of a local high school where classes resumed Oct. 4. Principal Mike Ogden allowed guardsmen to sleep in the school gymnasium and park their 65 vehicles in the school parking lot. The ROTC teachers have even taken advantage of the military’s presence to enhance their curriculum.

Capt. Eric Cox, a former teacher in San Antonio, talked to students about his experiences during this humanitarian relief mission.

“Our mission was to take care of the county and feed people,” Captain Cox told the students about packaged meals. “We ate the same food we were passing out.”

More than half the task force guardsmen have been working nonstop since the beginning of September when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast.

When they leave, Air National Guardsmen will return to Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, and Naval Air Station-Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas.

“Regrettably, we will shake hands with our new friends in Liberty County and East Texas and say goodbye,” said Maj. Jon Thompson. “We were proud to assist Texans and will be ready for any future calls.”