Mo. Members Assist with Protective Equipment Transport, Warehousing

Lt. Col. David A. Miller
Public Affairs Officer
Missouri Wing

Missouri Wing members from across the state are providing assistance to the St. Louis County Emergency Operations Center during the COVID-19 crisis.

The ongoing mission initially began as ground transportation of needed personal protective equipment (PPE) from out-of-state vendors for first responders’ use in the greater St. Louis area. Once received, the St. Louis County EOC requested additional assistance in inventorying, sorting and distributing of the PPE at its central warehouse.

The Missouri Wing members assisting are not interacting with the public and are screened daily (including temperature checks) by the EOC before participating.

Several Illinois Wing members who live nearby are also assisting. In addition, a Minnesota Wing ground team was also involved with the initial ground transportation of PPE.

“Our members train for disasters, and that training can be of use in situations such as the current coronavirus pandemic,” said Maj. Steve Vogt, mission incident commander. “This has been a challenging mission due to the need for social distancing and local stay-at-home orders, but our members are rising to the challenge and helping their communities during this time of need.”