National Guard Prepared For Hurricane Season

  HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. (AP) - National Guard officers from 27 states and federal responders say their first-ever conference has helped fine tune emergency plans for the upcoming hurricane season.
    Officials hope the meeting at Hilton Head Island that ended Thursday will help avoid the confusion that arose after Hurricane Katrina.
    The four-star general in charge of the Pentagon’s military arm for homeland defense says the work done at the conference means help will get to people more efficiently before, during and after a major storm.
    About 300 members of federal, state and military organizations had met for three days.
    Participants included top Army, Air Force and National Guard officials, as well as their counterparts from the Coast Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.
   
    (Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)