New York National Guard Operational Update, June 23 2020

LATHAM, NY (06/23/2020) (readMedia)-- On Tuesday June 23 , the New York National Guard has 2,817 personnel on the COVID-19 response mission across New York.

This includes 2,358 New York Army National Guard Soldiers and 316 New York Air National Guard Airmen. 143 members of the New York Guard (the State Defense Force) and New York Naval Militia are also mobilized for the mission in State Active Duty status.

Command and control of COVID-19 operations are conducted by two task forces.

Joint Task Force North is based at the Thompson Road Armory in Syracuse and oversees missions in upstate New York. Joint Task Force South is headquartered at the Lexington Avenue Armory in Manhattan and oversees missions on Long island, in New York City and the lower Hudson Valley.

The New York National Guard continues to coordinate with city and state officials for the readiness of the Javits Convention Center and conducts warehousing operations there.

Guard troops also continue to support access control at three potential alternate care sites on Long Island or Westchester that remain in a cold status.

A mission to assist at five antibody testing sites located around the state has ended. 14,269 antibody tests were administered at the state run locations the New York National Guard had been supporting.

The National Guard continues to support 15 drive-thru COVID-19 testing sites with administrative and logistical support, medical support at some sites and mask fit testing services. Sites were closed on Father's Day.

Sites are located at:

• SUNY Stony Brook;

• Jones Beach State Park;

• Staten Island adjacent the Staten Island University Hospital;

• Glen Island State Park in Westchester County;

• The Anthony Wayne Service area in Rockland County;

• Lehman College and the Bay Plaza Mall in the Bronx;

• Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens;

• Linden Blvd., Brooklyn;

• SUNY Albany;

• Niagara County Community College in Sandborn, N.Y.;

• The Buffalo Sabres KeyBank Center parking lot in Buffalo;

• SUNY Binghamton;

• Griffiss International Airport, Rome;

and Monroe County Community College in Rochester.

Soldiers and Airmen are collecting samples and providing general-purpose support at the testing locations. 342,304 tests have been conducted at these locations.

The New York National Guard's 24th Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team is currently conducting COVID-19 testing at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Brooklyn for staff and patients. This mission will conclude at the end of the month.

New York National Guard personnel continue food packaging and distribution in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Manhattan in New York City. Soldiers and Airmen have distributed 33,181,008 meals since beginning the mission. More than half a million meals, on average, are provided each day.

Similar food distribution missions continue in Westchester County with 176,073 meals have been distributed at five locations since the start of the mission.

In Chenango County, Soldiers have distributed 16,035 meals to senior citizens around the county.

New York Soldiers and Airmen continue conducting logistics missions, including warehousing and commodity distribution of medical supplies at five sites in the Hudson Valley, the Albany area, the Mohawk Valley, and New York City.

Hand sanitizer delivery to local governments is ongoing. A total of 91,483`gallons of sanitizer have been distributed in the lower Hudson Valley since the start of the mission.

Soldiers are operating phones for the New York City Division of Veterans Services. They are assisting in Operation Vet Check, in which veterans are contacted to see how they are doing or if they require assistance.12,811 calls were made.

Soldiers are providing logistical support to a New York City initiative to provide air conditioners to seniors.

New York National Guard Soldiers continue to provide administrative support at two New York City 911 call centers.

Soldiers and Airmen continue packaging COVID-19 test kits for the New York State Department of Health at the Wadsworth Laboratory in Albany. A total of 2,045,636 test kits have been assembled.

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.