Michigan National Guard re-missioned to North Carolina to help communities impacted by Helene

MUSKEGON CO., Mich. (WNEM) - The 40 Michigan Army National Guard soldiers headed to South Carolina to help residents impacted by Hurricane Helene were re-missioned to support North Carolina communities.

The Michigan Department of Military and Veterans Affairs announced the change on Tuesday, Oct. 8.

The soldiers, assigned to the Michigan Army National Guard’s 1436th Engineer Company, 507th Engineer Battalion, based out of Montague, landed in North Carolina on Monday, Oct. 7.

The soldiers will help federal and local authorities with debris removal and road clearing, as a part of the emergency response mission, to help areas impacted by severe flooding in North Carolina.

Previous Story from Friday, Oct. 4

Forty soldiers assigned to the Michigan Army National Guard’s 1436th Engineer Company, 507th Engineer Battalion, based out of Montague, will head to South Carolina to help residents impacted by Hurricane Helene.

The soldiers will help federal and local authorities with debris removal and road clearing, as a part of the emergency response mission, to help areas impacted by severe flooding.

On Sept. 26, the Michigan State Police Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division deployed a 19-member Michigan Task Force 1 (MI-TF1) Type I Swiftwater Team, through the Michigan Mutual Aid Box Alarm System, to help with water search and rescue operations in North Carolina due to Tropical Storm Helene, according to the Michigan Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.

Hurricane Helene weakened to a tropical storm once it crossed over land, and its maximum sustained winds fell to 70 miles per hour.

Latest on Hurricane Recovery Efforts: As search for Helene’s victims drags into second week, sheriff says rescuers ‘will not rest’

MI-TF1 spent a week working in dangerous and remote conditions in the area of Chimney Rock, where they conducted 28 rescues and evacuations in Burke and Rutherford counties. The team rescued three first-responders and a resident who were trapped from a boat pinned against a bridge, conducted a rescue of seven residents from a flooded apartment complex, saved a severely dehydrated elderly man in need of helicopter evacuation, and used a rope-system to rescue and move a man and woman - who are originally from Michigan - across a river.

In total, MI-TF1 searched 646 buildings and covered over 3,000 acres during their time in North Carolina. They were demobilized on Oct. 4 and are expected to arrive home on Friday, Oct. 4.

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