CAP's response efforts in wake of catastrophic Hurricane Katrina

(Above, top) Aerial image of New Orleans' Superdome taken by a Louisiana Wing aircrew Aug. 30 while flying a damage-assessment mission at the request of the Louisiana Department of Homeland Security. The image was shot and transmitted to officials on the ground using Civil Air Patrol's satellite-transmitted digital imaging system.

(Above, middle) Aerial image taken by a Louisiana Wing aircrew shows the sections of Interstate 10 between New Orleans and Slidell, La., that collapsed Aug. 29 during Hurricane Katrina. The image was taken using Civil Air Patrol's satellite-transmitted digital imaging system during a damage assessment mission at the request of the Louisiana Department of Homeland Security.

(Above, bottom)Aerial image taken by an Alabama Wing aircrew of an oil platform that slammed up against a bridge in Mobile, Ala., during Hurricane Katrina Aug. 29. The image was taken using Civil Air Patrol's satellite-transmitted digital imaging system during a damage assessment mission at the request of the Mobile Emergency Management Agency.

Click on any of the photos above for larger images.

NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS – Saying "there will be no time limit" on Civil Air Patrol’s Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, CAP National Commander Maj. Gen. Antonio J. Pineda addressed local, state and national media at a press conference this morning at the joint headquarters building of CAP and CAP-U.S. Air Force on Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.

Pineda explained CAP’s satellite-transmitted digital imaging system and how volunteers are using the state-of-the-art technology to help federal and state emergency management officials assess the damage via aerial imagery.

The catastrophic Category 4 hurricane has caused severe flooding in coastal and inland areas of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, and is now blamed for hundreds of deaths.

Pineda stood before a large screen that showed images of destruction caused by the hurricane. One image showed the extensive damage to Charity Hospital in New Orleans and another revealed the battered I-10 bridge sections from New Orleans to Slidell, La. The pictures were taken by CAP volunteers using the SDIS technology while flying missions in a CAP Cessna C-182.

"SDIS has worked very well for us, and it is available at the request of all the state governments and FEMA," Pineda said. "It just takes a phone call from the local governments to request our assistance. CAP’s volunteers are ready and willing to come and help our fellow citizens in those states."

Pineda said CAP ground teams are also on standby to assist local agencies, and that CAP is providing help to the Red Cross, and CAP mobile communications systems from other wings in the U.S. are en route to the disaster area to assist CAP disaster-relief teams and local agencies that need communications support.

Air Force Col. George C. Vogt, commander of CAP-USAF, added that CAP members will provide even more assistance following the initial emergency response. "We can help FEMA officials, elected officials and others who need access to some of the smaller runways that are a little closer to the disaster areas," said Vogt. "I also anticipate there might be a need for some search dogs. CAP can assist in that area as well."

"These people are wonderful people, they are team players and any time there is a disaster in our country, you can count on the CAP to be here to help," Pineda said.In addition, it was announced today that CAP has established a Civil Air Patrol Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief Fund. Donations can be made online or can be mailed in to Civil Air Patrol National Headquarters, Attn: CAP Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund, 105 S. Hansell St., Maxwell AFB 36112.

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NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS – Members of the all-volunteer Civil Air Patrol, the auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, have been asked, for the second day in a row, to fly aerial photography missions today after receiving requests from agencies in Mississippi and Alabama as Tropical Depression Katrina continued to move further inland.

On Tuesday, CAP members captured dozens of images of destruction in New Orleans from the air, flew two aerial photography missions in south Alabama and flew aerial transport missions for Mississippi emergency management officials.

The catastrophic Category 4 hurricane caused severe flooding in coastal and inland areas of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, and is blamed for more than 150 deaths so far.
Today CAP members are scheduled to fly aerial photography missions in Mississippi and Alabama after receiving requests for support from the Mississippi Department of Transportation and the Mobile Emergency Management Agency respectively.

On Tuesday, at the request of the Department of Homeland Security for Louisiana, a crew from CAP’s Louisiana Wing, flying one of CAP’s Cessna C-182s, captured numerous images of damage in New Orleans. The aircrew members used CAP’s satellite-transmitted digital imaging system to quickly relay the imagery to emergency services officials on the ground.

Also on Tuesday, CAP pilots in Alabama flew two damage-assessment missions at the request of the Mobile Emergency Management Agency, which asked for aerial photographs of Dauphin Island and Bayou La Batre as well as images of flooding and damage along Mobile Bay and in other low-lying areas. In addition, aircrews from Mississippi transported emergency management officials at the request of Mississippi Department of Transportation.

"The CAP national commander has placed all of Civil Air Patrol on alert and every wing is prepared to respond," Rick McDow, deputy director of CAP Operations from CAP’s National Operations Center at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala. "Additionally, there are units all across the country equipped with SDIS technology at a heightened state of readiness and they are prepared to launch as soon as they are needed."

CAP National Commander Maj. Gen. Antonio J. Pineda said CAP members are contributing enormously to the disaster-response effort.

"The CAP volunteers assigned to these missions are working around the clock to help identify critically needed emergency services. CAP volunteers are also on alert to perform missions on the ground targeting an array of needs – from search and rescue to the delivery of food, supplies and shelter," Pineda said.

CAP-U.S. Air Force Commander Col. George Vogt praised the cooperation between CAP and CAP-USAF -- the oversight organization for CAP -- and emergency management agencies in the affected areas. He praised CAP’s volunteers who are helping with disaster relief even though many of their own homes have been damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

"Rather than seeking help, they’re willing to volunteer and give help," said Vogt, who explained the unique relationship between CAP and the Air Force. "All Air Force-assigned missions for disaster relief like this are coordinated and tracked through 1st Air Force, located at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida. So, with the help of the Civil Air Patrol’s National Operations Center at Maxwell Air Force Base, CAP’s missions are tracked right along with the activities of other Air Force assets," Vogt said.

CAP, the auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, performs 95 percent of all continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. More than 56,000 volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counterdrug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the almost 25,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing "missions for America" for more than 60 years.

For more information, go to http://level2.cap.gov/visitors/news_events/www.cap.gov or call CAP’s toll-free hotline: 1-800-FLY-2338.