US Troops Have Rescued, Evacuated Hundreds Post-Hurricane Florence

Thousands of active-duty and National Guard troops are using amphibious vehicles and search-and-rescue aircraft to move people and equipment after Hurricane Florence battered the East Coast last week, even as some of their own bases were damaged by the storm.

Rainfall and rising water levels continue to threaten areas of North and South Carolina four days after Florence made landfall as a Category 1 storm.

Air Force Gen. Terrence O'Shaughnessy, head of U.S. Northern Command, said the military has been able to work seamlessly with state and federal authorities leading relief efforts; 13,000 service members are responding to some of those agencies' requests, including 6,000 active-duty forces and about 7,000 National Guard members, he said Tuesday from Raleigh, North Carolina.

Troops from Fort Bragg, Camp Lejeune, and Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in North Carolina; Fort Jackson in South Carolina; and Moody Air Force Base in Georgia have pitched in.

In coordination with local, state and federal authorities, the Defense Department not only pre-staged meals and water, but also vehicles that could operate in floodwaters and helicopters for search-and-rescue and transport missions.

"As it turns out, that's exactly what we needed to have," O'Shaughnessy said.

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