Federal Government Activates National Guard to Assist New York, California, Washington

The federal government called up the National Guard on Sunday to reinforce efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic in New York, California and Washington. 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will fund the cost of the deployment, per CNN. The three states are so far the ones that have been hit hardest by the virus and have already declared disasters. 

President Trump said the federal government will continue to serve as “backup” to the state governors who remain “in command.” 

“We’ll be following them and we hope they can do the job and I think they will. I spoke with all three of the governors today, just a little while ago and they’re very happy with what we’re going to be doing,” Trump said in a White House briefing.

In addition to the National Guard, FEMA will also provide four medical stations in New York with 1,000 beds; eight medical stations in California with 2,000 beds; and three medical stations in Washington with 1,000 beds. Supplies will reach New York and California within the next two days. 

There are currently more than 32,000 cases of coronavirus in the U.S. and at least 400 people have died, according to CNN.