By: MAJ. Darren T. Herring Jr., Deputy Director of Public Affairs, Public Affairs Officer, 139th Regional Support Group
This fall, the Louisiana National Guard’s 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, known as the Tiger Brigade, commemorates the 20th anniversary of its redeployment from Iraq in September 2005, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
After 18 months of federal mobilization, including combat training and deployment to Iraq, nearly 4,000 Soldiers of the 256th were eager to return home for rest and reunion with loved ones. Instead, they returned to a state devastated by two of the most catastrophic hurricanes in U.S. history.
During the Iraq deployment, the Tiger Brigade endured its most intense combat mission, suffering more than 30 fatalities, including 22 Louisiana Soldiers, and nearly 300 wounded in action in and around Baghdad. As the brigade prepared to redeploy and was relieved by 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, news of Hurricane Katrina’s devastation broke.
Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 141st Field Artillery Regiment, 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, also known as the Washington Artillery, headquartered at Jackson Barracks in New Orleans, were particularly concerned for their families and communities. Lt. Col. Jordan Jones, commander, at the time, of the 1-141st, stated, “They’re all watching TV, and some have seen their neighborhoods completely submerged in water.”
Members of the New York National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry Regiment, known as the Fighting Sixty-Ninth, offered their return flight seats to affected Soldiers, but scheduling constraints prevented last-minute changes.
By mid-September 2005, most of the brigade had returned home only to face Hurricane Rita, which threatened Southwest Louisiana. Soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 156th Infantry Regiment, 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and 3rd Battalion, 156th Infantry Regiment, 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, whose armories are in Abbeville and Lake Charles, immediately expressed concern for their families and homes.
Brig. Gen. John Basilica, then-commander of the 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, was appointed commander of Task Force Pelican, responsible for coordinating National Guard hurricane response efforts across the State. The task force included tens of thousands of National Guard Soldiers from Louisiana and other states.
Tiger Brigade Soldiers were not mandated to respond but volunteered in large numbers, with more than 800 Soldiers joining state active duty. Among these volunteers were a large percentage of the brigade staff who were able to utilize the combat-honed skills developed in Iraq.
“We brought a trained staff that had been doing combat operations,” Basilica said, “Restoring essential services, providing security, clearing routes and restoring government, we used some of the same techniques.”
Task Force Pelican adapted quickly, repositioning forces to respond to Hurricane Rita’s impact while continuing ongoing efforts to support Katrina recovery.
The mission officially concluded in February 2006. Several Soldiers served nearly two years of continuous duty, exemplifying the Louisiana National Guard motto: Protect What Matters.
