Thursday, MEMA’s Executive Director Lee Smithson testified in Washington for a senate committee about the coast guard.
During his testimony Smithson referenced the recent Hurricane Nate saying that the prior planning with organizations like the U.S. Coastguard helped to minimize the storm’s effect.
“There were only two rescues that needed to be made during Hurricane Nate, but the coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard in our operations center along with the USCG Sector Mobile and USCG Sector Lower Mississippi River had us prepared to do many more,”said Smithson.
Smithson who responded to the question of how far the U.S. can stretch the nation’s only multi-mission military force said that the Coast Guard needs additional funding.
“While I’m not here today to discuss budgets, I would like to leave you with this thought: If the Coast Guard had additional resources, I and my counterparts across the nation would be able to have more direct contact with Coast Guard personnel if they were stationed inside our emergency operations centers on a daily basis, not just during large scale emergencies,” said Smithson. “In the sixteen years since the September 11 terrorist attacks on our nation, all too often our leaders have forgotten how important it is to maintain a constant state of readiness. Readiness translates to resources. Our Coast Guard must have highly qualified, motivated and dedicated service members. Their equipment must be modern and fully functional.”
Click HERE for a video of the U.S. Senate committee meeting.
