US President Donald Trump on Sunday said the National Guard had been activated in New York, California and Washington and that the federal government would provide additional resources to help those states combat the coronavirus.
“We’re dealing also with other states. These states have been hit the hardest,” Trump said at a news briefing at the White House, according to The Hill.
He added that the federal government would fund “100 percent” of the National Guard units carrying out approved missions in those states. The order will provide additional manpower and resources to the three states grappling with some of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the US.
Trump said he had spoken with the Democratic governors of all three states on Sunday. He
The president laid out various additional medical supplies would be shipped out to those states in the coming days and said troops would help construct additional medical facilities at specified sites in each state.
New York will receive four federal medical stations with 1,000 hospital beds; California will receive eight medical stations with 2,000 beds; and Washington will receive several stations and 1,000 beds.
Trump also touted the shipment of tens of thousands of pieces of personal protective equipment from the national stockpile to those states, including gloves, masks and gowns.
The deployment of added resources to those three states comes after governors have called on Trump to put the force of the National Guard and Army Corps of Engineers behind the coronavirus response.
There are more than 30,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US and more than 400 deaths.
