Two Wisconsin National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and approximately 15 Soldiers are en route to California to assist the California National Guard as it battles wildfires raging across the state.
The aircraft, along with crews and maintenance personnel from the Madison-based 1st Battalion, 147th Aviation, departed Madison for California today after Wisconsin received an Emergency Management Assistance Compact – or EMAC – request from California.
The California National Guard is serving in support of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, and the crews from the Wisconsin National Guard will receive their specific mission taskings after arriving in California from the California Guard and local civil authorities there. The crews are prepared to employ water buckets to battle fires and take on any other assigned missions.
