Guard faces doubts about readiness
Emergency response to be topic of hearing
Increasingly concerned that the war in Iraq might weaken the Massachusetts National Guard at home, lawmakers plan to question the Guard's state commander tomorrow about his ability to respond to domestic emergencies.
``With more troops that are being deployed, more people that are outside the United States, and the makeup of those forces left at home, it leaves open the question: How prepared are we?" said Senator Marc R. Pacheco, a Taunton Democrat who is chairman of the Committee on Post Audit and Oversight, which will conduct the hearing.
``Can we handle a big hurricane? Can we handle a significant natural disaster?" Pacheco asked.
The Guard announced yesterday that 150 members of a Brockton-based field-artillery unit will have a farewell ceremony Saturday before departing for a yearlong tour in Iraq. On Monday, a similar ceremony was held in Framingham for a 150-member Guard transportation unit that will be shipped to Iraq.
Brigadier General Oliver J. Mason Jr., the adjutant general for the state National Guard, is scheduled to testify at the hearing, the first on the Guard's preparedness since Sept. 11.
Pacheco said yesterday that Mason would also be asked about enlistment rates and whether continued deployments overseas have stripped the state of National Guard equipment that might be needed in a natural disaster. According to Pacheco, the Army National Guard appears to be about 2,000 soldiers short of its authorized strength in Massachusetts.
``We want to get on the record with the adjutant general exactly what this all means in terms of readiness," Pacheco said.
Major Winfield Danielson, spokesman for the Massachusetts National Guard, said the deployments have not compromised the Guard's ability to do its job at home.
The 800 Guard members mobilized during the May flooding, he said, is the same number that would have been used if the Guard's entire complement were still in Massachusetts.
However, Danielson said, the Massachusetts National Guard fell to 7,600 members in fiscal 2006 from 9,500 in fiscal 2002. Danielson said the Guard does not believe the decrease is linked specifically to the war on terrorism.
Instead, he said, the Guard is hurt by the small number of bases in the Northeast and by the diminished presence of full-time military personnel. ``That lack of visibility is a challenge for us," he said.
Still, after three years in which the Guard averaged 95 recruits per month out of a goal of 120, Danielson said, the monthly numbers since October have averaged 127.
New recruiting offices in high-traffic locations such as shopping malls and industrial parks have helped, Danielson said, as have a $20,000 bonus for new enlistees and a waiver of tuition and fees at state colleges and universities that is scheduled to take effect July 1.
Since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a total of 4,700 Massachusetts National Guard soldiers and airmen have served overseas, Danielson said.
The latest group to prepare for deployment -- Headquarters Battery, First Battalion, 101st Field Artillery -- will guard military bases, convoys, and facilities, and perform some military police duties, Danielson said.
``We've been training for this for the last couple of years," said Sergeant Neil Bailey, 25, of South Attleboro. ``I'm a little nervous and excited."
Brian MacQuarrie can be reached at macquarrie@globe.com. 