Maxwell Air Force Base used as Hurricane Ida FEMA supply location

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - Search and rescue efforts are underway after Hurricane Ida roared ashore along the Louisiana coast Sunday as a powerful category 4 storm.

Necessary relief will be headed towards that area soon.

Some of the relief will be coming from Maxwell Air Force Base. The base is being used to hold trucks for the Federal Emergency Management Agency that will send generators and more critically needed items to the coastal region.

“We’re partnering with FEMA, and naturally there is an incident staging base at Maxwell Air Force Base. So there’s hundreds of semi trucks, semi trailers full of generators and commodities,” said Alabama EMA Director Brian Hastings.

There are close to 250 trucks on the base with more expected to arrive by the end of Monday.

“And they’re just sitting there,” Hastings said. “They’re sitting there waiting to push someplace else when there’s a need or a capability.”

This is not the first time Maxwell has served as an incident support base for FEMA.

Col. Eries Mentzer says they’ve supported other hurricanes, including Dorian, Katrina, Irma and Maria. Mentzer says this preparation has a deeper meaning for the three priorities in the wing: fight tonight, fight tomorrow and the freedom to serve.

“When we talk about fight tonight that’s all about being ready, when our base, our community or our nation need us,” said Mentzer “It’s clear right now that FEMA needs us in support of the south east region. And I’m proud to say that when FEMA called my airmen were ready.”

Ten trucks carrying 30 generators are scheduled to leave Maxwell for Camp Shelby in Hattiesburg, Mississippi Monday.