DLA Distribution San Joaquin assists FEMA in Hurricane Relief Efforts

TRACY, Calif. – As many of us marvel at the super heroes on the big screen, the real super heroes are the men and women of the DLA Distribution Expeditionary, or DDXX, team providing Hurricane Irma relief support.

DLA is working in unison with U.S. Northern Command and the Federal Emergency Management Agency in supporting roles in the overall federal disaster response. The DDXX team is supporting FEMA Region IX with its logistics capability.

The DDXX team assigned to DLA Distribution San Joaquin, California, deployed all 15 of its members along with five volunteers from the distribution center and Information Operations. The team deployed to FEMA’s Incident Support Base at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.

According to Army Maj. Grant Thimsen, DLA Distribution San Joaquin Operations Officer, the DDXX team is doing well.

“The team is currently on a 24 hour operation fulfilling 12 hour shifts in support of the relief efforts,” he commented. “We are busy pushing commodities out today to Florida in support of the FEMA relief efforts there.”

The expeditionary team is assisting FEMA with processing approximately 250 FEMA contracted trucks per day carrying supplies to those affected by Irma’s destruction. The supplies include 2 million shelf stable meals, blankets, medical support kits and other resources.

The DDXX team contains multiple skill set employees, to include Distribution Process Worker Supervisors, Distribution Process Workers, Traffic Management Specialist, Transportation Assistants, Supply Technicians, and Administrative Support. All of these employees along with the Operations Officer attached to San Joaquin’s Operations Cell and the specialized DLA Information Operations team members enable DDXX to complete their important mission in supplying world-class logistics support to those in need.

The DLA Information Operations members are providing computer and communications support. Currently, radios, satellite communications, signal boosters, Voice over Internet Protocol phones, satellite phones, Video Teleconfrencing, televisions for viewing the weather and news, laptops and printers are all connected and running to aid the team in their daily operation.

In addition to the DDXX team from San Joaquin, the DDXX teams from Red River, Texas, and New Cumberland, Pennsylvania, are on site at the Incident Support Base.