Chainsaws, shovels and muscle brought to bear by an Ohio militia

Ohio's militias are armed and ready, with good intent they say

The Plain Dealer
By Brian Albrecht
July 28, 2019

But there are militias that say they support the government and exist to serve as a citizen’s defense force in the historical sense of these groups. Armed, yes, but also prepared and trained to respond to disasters or local community needs.

Members of the Irregulars of Ohio Reserve Militia take a break for a photo with personnel of the Life’s Little Adventures Farm in Wooster, where militia members cleared fallen trees and foliage in May to help the facility that uses rescued animals in therapeutic programs for children, and veterans recovering from PTSD. (Brian Albrecht/The Plain Dealer)

CLEVELAND, Ohio — This is the militia: Men and women clad in camos, carrying semi-automatic rifles, stalking the woodlands, shredding targets, prepping for worst-case scenarios.

And this is the militia: Two militia members arrested and charged in Cincinnati earlier this year for allegedly making bombs; a militia leader arrested and charged with firearms possession by a felon in April after a video showed his group detaining migrants in New Mexico at gunpoint; two members of a Illinois militia pleading guilty in January to bombing a Minnesota mosque; three Kansas militia men convicted last year of plotting to blow up an apartment complex where Somali refugees lived.

And this: Chainsaws, shovels and muscle brought to bear by an Ohio militia to help clean up tornado-ravaged areas of Dayton, and an overgrown farm in Wooster that offers therapeutic programs to treat traumatized families and veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.

The recent history of private militias in Ohio and the United States has been fraught with confrontation and violence.
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New Law Lets Reservists Respond to Disasters

New Law Lets Reservists Respond to Disasters
Aug 31, 2012
Associated Press
by Gene Johnson

BELLEVUE, Wash. -- As hurricane season arrives, governors have a new resource to call upon in the event of a major disaster: military reservists.

Historically, there's been no mechanism under federal law to order reservists to duty in response to a domestic emergency except in limited circumstances. But the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act changed that, giving governors, who already can mobilize National Guard troops, the ability to request the help of the nation's 380,000 reservists in the event of a hurricane, earthquake, flood, terrorist attack or other disaster.

The goal is for the reservists to be ready to help within three days, Maj. Gen. Luis Visot, the Army Reserve's deputy commanding general for operations, told government and business officials at a disaster response conference in Bellevue on Thursday.

"In any kind of disaster, the governor of the state will first and foremost utilize their resources," Visot said. "But we can out and help and get authorized to do it. ... It's all about thinking about the capabilities that are available to you. If there's a need, you can have access to it."

Hurricane Isaac in Louisiana didn't require such a response, and the new authority has yet to be used. Under it, governors would ask the White House for help from the Army, Air Force, Navy or Marine reserves. The reservists could stay on duty for up to four months and could come under the leadership of National Guard commanders already on scene.
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Tornadoes Rip Through South, Killing 48

Tornadoes Rip Through South, Killing 48
By ANTONIO GONZALEZThe Associated Press Wednesday, February 6, 2008; 10:17 AM
LAFAYETTE, Tenn. -- Daybreak revealed a battered landscape across the South on Wednesday, as crews searching communities hit by a violent line of tornadoes fought through downed power lines, crumpled mobile homes and snapped trees to find victims. At least 48 people were dead.
The storms swept across Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas as Super Tuesday primaries were ending, ripping the roof from a shopping mall, blowing apart warehouses and crumpling a campus' dormitory buildings as students huddled inside.
Seavia Dixon, whose Atkins, Ark. was shattered, stood Wednesday morning in her yard, holding muddy baby pictures of her son, who is now a 20-year-old soldier in Iraq. Only a concrete slab was left from the home.

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