When the clock strikes midnight in Georgia, the Georgia National Guard will be poised to respond should emergencies arise due to Y2K or the “millenium bug.”

For the past year, the Georgia National Guard has been working closely with the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, the state's lead agency in Y2K, in testing emergency scenarios and systems statewide.

“The Georgia National Guard has planned for Y2K in exactly the same manner as we would for other national disasters like floods, tornadoes, hurricanes or any other emergencies that may effect the state,“ said Maj. Gen. David B. Poythress, Georgia's adjutant general. Should emergencies occur or local situations require National Guard assistance, Poythress, with the approval of the governor, will be ready to commit National Guard resources rapidly.

“Around the country, the National Guard has taken a lead role in the planning for the `millenium bug.' I am confident that we are ready as we can be both internally, through the testing of our own complex systems, as well as externally with the ability to respond quickly with National Guard resources and assets to the needs of the state,” said Poythress.

The Georgia National Guard has concentrated a significant portion of its testing on ensuring reliable communications throughout the state and nation in the event of communications interruptions. A highly reliable high frequency communications network using Georgia National Guard assets has been tested and deemed ready by officials as a backup communications system. It will provide communications for civil authorities in the case of normal communications failures as well as providing a link to all National Guard units around the state and nation.

“All National Guard assets are ready for call up if needed — aviation, security, engineering and transportation are all able to respond immediately if called,“ said Lt. Col. George Blake, the Georgia National Guard's principal Y2K officer.

“However, National Guard troops will not be gathering at armories or on bases around the state in anticipation for possible callup for Y2K,” continued Blake. If needed, Georgia guardsmen can be mobilized quickly and deployed around the state, as conditions require.

“We have contingency plans in place to get guardsmen and critical National Guard equipment to staging areas as quickly as possible,” said Blake. As an example of the Guard's ability to rapidly mobilize, Blake uses the recent National Guard callup during hurricane Floyd in September. More than 1,800 guardsmen were called to state active duty, assembled at locations around the state, and deployed to coastal Georgia within hours.

On New Year's Eve, Poythress and other National Guard officers will forego holiday celebrations to man positions at the 24-hour National Guard emergency operations center at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta. Guard officials also will man positions in the GEMA state operations center. These centers will remain active until the immediate Y2K concerns have passed.

The National Guard is the only military force authorized by law to assist local communities during times of disaster or emergency. Its sophisticated military technology and equipment form a reliable backup to local emergency resources, Poythress said.