LOUISVILLE, Ky. — To address the increased need of food for Kentuckians, Governor Andy Beshear deployed the National Guard to help food banks.
Roughly 250 army and air national guards are carrying out six to seven other missions across the Commonwealth, according to Major Stephen Martin Kentucky National Guard Public Affairs.
"I've been deployed a few times, but this is the first time in the state of Kentucky we've seen some kind of crisis of this nature," Major Curtis Persinger with 198th Military Police Battalion said.
About 16 soldiers are volunteering with Dare to Care to package meals for the next two weeks. They are working inside a 350,000 square foot warehouse on Fern Valley Road. Dare to Care's goal is to have 10,000 meals total for delivery. The troops are aiming to package 4,000 of them.
"I think it's an all hands on deck approach to this pushed down from the Governor down to the chain of command," Persinger said. "We're ready here to assist and to support the Kentuckians when they need it."
About 70 troops are assigned to food banks in four different cities. Other troops are stationed outside hospitals, CDC call centers, and warehouses to sort out PPE.
"We're all going to come together there's no doubt in my mind with the help of first-responders across the state of Kentucky," Persinger said.