CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Nearly 500 members of the West Virginia National Guard are assisting in various aspects of the state’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Guard’s logistics team delivered seven ventilators to five hospitals Saturday including CAMC Memorial, Ruby Memorial, Camden Clark in Parkersburg and ARH hospitals in Beckley and Princeton.
Guard members plan to be in Hundred Monday to work on communication issues in connection with telemedicine efforts. A Guard team reported a successful mission in a similar test in Wharton Friday.
Attention by the Guard Monday turns to WorkForce West Virginia where members will help process unemployment claims. The Guard announced Saturday it hopes to have at least 30 members on the job in a matter of days.
Gov. Jim Justice announced Friday the claims office would be 24/7 starting Monday. New claims have averaged 7,000 a day in recent weeks and those numbers are expected to increase with additional furloughs announced Friday at hospitals in the Kanawha Valley and Huntington.