BISMARCK, N.D. (National Guard) – The North Dakota National Guard recently placed about 65 Guard members on COVID-19 duty in support of the North Dakota Department of Health (NDDoH).

About 50 of these Guard members will support the NDDoH’s COVID-19 contact identification efforts while 15 others will support the state laboratory in Bismarck.

The Guard members will be on state active duty with orders under the authority of FEMA (502f). These tours of duty are scheduled at least through December 31.

“As always, I applaud the resiliency and willingness of our Citizen-Soldiers and Citizen-Airmen to serve our communities when they are needed,” said Maj. Gen. Al Dohrmann, N.D. adjutant general. “The support of our Families and employers continues to be paramount to our ability to successfully answer the call of duty”.

The N.D. National Guard began COVID-19 duty on March 16, 2020. Last November, the N.D. National Guard assessed 67,495 personnel-days, surpassing the record 67,264 personnel-days worked in response to 2011 state-wide flooding, making it the largest and longest state mobilization in history. Currently we are on the 552nd day of COVID-19 support duty with over 121,415 personnel-days expended on this mission.

Including operational and administrative support, about 80 N.D. Guard members are currently serving on state active duty for this mission.