New York National Guard Daily Update for March 28, 2020

LATHAM, NY (03/29/2020) (readMedia)-- On Saturday, March 28, the New York National Guard has more than 2,250 personnel on mission across the state. This includes members of the New York Army and Air National Guard, the New York Guard (State Defense Force), and

the New York Naval Militia.

Six Joint Task Forces are operating on Long Island, New York City, the Hudson Valley, Capital Region, Syracuse and Buffalo to support state and local governments.

In New York City, New York National Guard personnel continue to support the final preparations to receive patients at the Jacob Javits Center FEMA field hospital.

A centralized nursing station was installed Friday, along with associated furniture. Pharmacy equipment and formulary arrived to be installed today. About 600 U.S. Army medical personnel from the 9th and 531st Hospital Centers, part of the 44th Medical Brigade, arrive at Javits today. The 531st is from Fort Campbell, Kentucky and the 9th from Fort Hood, Texas. These

personnel will staff the augmented care facility.

A New York National Guard mayor's cell and other Soldiers will continue supporting the 320 federal staff to manage the site.

New York also established a dual-status commander, New York Army National Guard Brigadier General Michel Natali, the New York National Guard's Assistant Adjutant General, Army, to command both National Guard and active duty forces operating in the state.

The New York National Guard continues to support six drive-thru testing sites. Sites are located at SUNY Stoneybrook, Jones Beach State Park, Staten Island, Glen Island State Park in Westchester County, the Anthony Wayne Service area in Rockland County, and Lehman College in the Bronx.

An additional site is being established today at Coop City - Bay Plaza Mall in the Bronx and the New York National Guard will assist in staffing that location with Soldiers and medical personnel.

New York National Guard personnel are continuing to support food packaging and distribution today in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island.

New York Soldiers and Airmen are also conducting logistics missions in support of the state response, including warehousing support and bulk distribution at sites in the Hudson Valley, the Albany area, and the Mohawk Valley. Soldiers moved some 500 pallets of supplies into the Jacob Javits Center yesterday, while receiving more than 200 pallets of medical supplies at other state warehouse sites.

Hand sanitizer warehousing and deliveries continue today across the lower Hudson Valley. Yesterday saw deliveries to 34 sites.

New York National Guard also continues to provide support to the New York State Coronavirus Hotline by working in a call center in Rotterdam, N.Y. to offering updated information to the public. Other Soldiers support a call center mission in Brooklyn in New York City. These locations support assistance calls to more than 10,000 residents each day.

Soldiers are also on call to assist Department of Health officials at the Wadsworth Laboratory in Albany for packaging COVID 19 test kits.

New York National Guard images continue to go up on DVIDS: https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/NYNG, and our NY National Guard Flickr site, https://www.flickr.com/photos/nyng.

Please attribute to Col. Richard Goldenberg, New York Army National Guard Public Affairs Officer. He can also be reached at

richard.l.goldenberg.mil@mail.mil or (518) 786-6150.