WEBVTT

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- We have breaking news
that has to do with COVID-19

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and the World Health
Organization has just declared,

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it is a pandemic.

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- Saying New Orleans is
considered a hotspot.

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- Dining in is out starting tonight.

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- If you just think about it,
in a period of four months,

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it has devastated the world
and it isn't over yet.

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(gentle music)

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- [Narrator] In the year 2020,

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the nation faced one of the greatest

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trials in its history.

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Families had to remain separate.

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Schools were closed and
thousands of loved ones were lost

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to an unseen unpredictable
enemy, the Novel Coronavirus.

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In March, the 377th
Theater Sustainment Command

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got the call.

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From across the country,
hundreds of soldiers citizens

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within our ranks came to the nation's aid.

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And arrived in the Crescent
city to provide support

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for Army North's fight against COVID-19.

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Charting untested waters,
the soldiers done masks

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stayed socially distant, and
worked through all the unique

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challenges of the new environment

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to make the mission succeed.

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- We knew New Orleans was a sensitive area

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and all the soldiers that
were arriving to support

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the mission, as well as
those that were already here

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had to adapt.

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Soldiers came into that
environment and were able to adapt

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to the various measures
that we put in place,

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especially with social distancing, PPE,

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whether it was masks.

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Early on, some were
wearing gloves to ensure

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that certain areas were kept clean.

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It was amazing the work that was done,

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in that short of period of time.

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I'm so proud of the soldiers

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and the work that was
accomplished during this mission.

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- [Narrator] As the mission took its form,

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we established our
partnerships with the units

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that we would come to work with,

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for the duration of our response.

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The 377th had control of
three sustainment commands,

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which were spread across the country,

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with missions as varied
as their locations.

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Out of Fort Hood, Texas,
the 13th Expeditionary

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Sustainment Command began
assisting with the movement

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of the 9th Hospital Center from Texas

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to the Javits Center in New York,

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almost as soon as the mission began.

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The lucky 13th, was responsible
for assets in the center

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of the country and relocated
over 300 medical personnel

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to New York and the front
line against COVID-19.

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Through line haul movement
of goods and contracting

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to support the troops along the way.

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he 13th created critical component,

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in our ability to respond
to the heavily hit area.

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In the West, the 4th
Expeditionary Sustainment Command

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out of Fort Sam Houston, Texas,

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oversaw the movement of over 700 soldiers

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to the Seattle Washington area.

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In support of a large
makeshift field hospital

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constructed at the CenturyLink
Field Event Center.

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The mission of this scale
was no small undertaking,

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and require the movement
of over 125 containers

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of medical equipment and supplies,

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to support the 250 bed hospital.

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The 4th maintain control
over the logistics support

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for the operation, until
health officials determined

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the assistance was no longer
needed as coronavirus cases

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began to waive.

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To the East, the 3rd
Expeditionary Sustainment Command

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of Fort Bragg, North Carolina,
received and processed

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over 3,200 personnel to
respond to the crisis.

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The command staged over 115
vehicles and generators.

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Provided 230 containers
full of medical equipment

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for support, and served over
8,400 meals to service members

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on their way to the fight
while they operated.

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In order to support the
movement of so many,

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the 3rd work tirelessly on
contracts for lodging, laundry,

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and transportation to enable
the essential medical personnel

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they supported to take on COVID-19.

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But our mission didn't stop there.

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(gentle music)

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There really is no place like home.

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And the headquarters of
the 377th made an impact

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right here in New Orleans.

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With over 300 headquarters personnel

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from across the country, working
on the nationwide response

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from here in Southern Louisiana,

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we established contracts
with local businesses

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to ensure the non-local
soldiers were safely

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taken care of during the response.

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In many cases, this was a
huge boom to the local economy

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that was hurt by the coronavirus.

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- The coronavirus shut down
our industry and in doing so,

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it also shut down our employment
for our personal employees

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along with many others.

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Luckily the 377 came to the
rescue at least from my hotel.

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And was able to give us rooms and give us

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their lodging needs.

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They cried when I let them go,

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and they cried when I called them back.

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Without the 377th, that
would have never happened.

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On a side note, I myself
am a Corona survivor.

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I almost tapped out one night,
except I made my husband

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swear on a stack of Bibles
he would never take me

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to the hospital.

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I said, if I'm gonna die,
I'm gonna die in my bed.

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I almost threw it in, but I survived.

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I'm here.

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I'm glad to be the
leader of this property.

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And I'm glad to know
as many of the soldiers

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that have stayed at my hotel.

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I know each one of them by name.

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- [Narrator] Additionally,
we played a pivotal role

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in receiving Navy medical
personnel into theater

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and transporting them
to the local hospitals

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they would support.

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The 377th would screen all
the sailors for COVID-19

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for travel to hospitals,
both in New Orleans

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and nearby Baton Rouge.

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All the while, we were
the lead in the nationwide

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logistics support on
behalf of US Army North.

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In this mission, we supervised
and maintained the operations

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of the 3rd, 4th and 13th
Sustainment Commands

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and enabled them to get the job done

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in the darkest of times.

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We were proud to be a part
of this historic response

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and will continue to be ready to respond

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to whatever may come in the times ahead.

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Thank you for your support New Orleans.

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I know that the next time you need us,

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we'll be there.