Reservists help joint command win rescue award

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  • 920th Rescue Wing Public Affairs
PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  When Maj. Gen. Hank Morrow received the National Institute for Urban Search and Rescue's (NIUSR) Eagle award recently, 920th Rescue Wing Airmen were there to help him lift it, in spirit if not in person.

General Morrow, commander of 1st Air Force (AFNORTH), accepted the award on behalf of U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) for the unit's multi-agency coordination of helicopter air support to local and state governments that rescued 400 Galveston, Texas, citizens during Hurricane Ike in September of 2008. 

The 920th Rescue Wing was involved throughout the rescue operation. 

Wing reservists deployed to the Gulf region days before Ike made landfall and were credited with saving 17 lives from the town of Nederland, Texas.

And wing commander Col. Steven Kirkpatrick was hand-picked by General Morrow to lead more than 800 joint-forces personnel with approximately 20 Air Force and Navy HH-60 helicopters and four HC-130s during the six-day operation, during which the group flew 153 sorties and rescued 323 civilians throughout Texas. 

The NIUSA award is presented annually to the person or organization that exhibits extreme courage in disastrous circumstances when the rescuers' life was at extreme risk. 

In addition to humanitarian relief, the 920th Rescue Wing's missions include combat and civil search and rescue, and emergency rescue and medical support of all NASA Space Shuttle launches. (information from a 1AF Press Release was used in this story)