"All National

Guard assets are ready for call up if needed

- aviation, security, engineering and

transportation are all able to respond

immediately if called," said Lt. Col. George

Blake, the Georgia National Guard's principal Y2K

officer.

"However,

National Guard troops will not be gathering at

armories or on bases around the state in

anticipation for possible callup for Y2K,"

continued Blake. If needed, Georgia guardsmen can

be mobilized quickly and deployed around the

state, as conditions require.

"We have

contingency plans in place to get guardsmen and

critical National Guard equipment to staging

areas as quickly as possible," said Blake.

As an example of the Guard's ability to rapidly

mobilize, Blake uses the recent National Guard

callup during hurricane Floyd in September. More

than 1,800 guardsmen were called to state active

duty, assembled at locations around the state,

and deployed to coastal Georgia within hours.

On New Year's Eve,

Poythress and other National Guard officers will

forego holiday celebrations to man positions at

the 24-hour National Guard emergency operations

center at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta.

Guard officials also will man positions in the

GEMA state operations center. These centers will

remain active until the immediate Y2K concerns

have passed.

The National Guard

is the only military force authorized by law to

assist local communities during times of disaster

or emergency. Its sophisticated military

technology and equipment form a reliable backup

to local emergency resources, Poythress said.

<!--

-----------