The Navy's deployment of cargo planes and ships for hurricane relief is having a ripple effect throughout the military that is being felt in the Middle East, the Korean peninsula, and other locations where America's military is needed.
CNN reported the deployments to the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Florida, and the Caribbean Sea in the wake of several strong hurricanes, are putting planned deployments to overseas destinations at risk. And the need for the Naval ships and planes close to home means some troops and ships could see their deployments in other parts of the world lengthened.
Secretary of Defense James Mattis appeared in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee this week and said the military will keep resources in Puerto Rico until they are no longer needed.
"We are ready to go even to the point that it's going to impact the deployments, perhaps, of some of these troops overseas next year because we've interrupted their preparation," Mattis said, CNN reported.
Military planners are now working to reconfigure deployments or determine how they are going to get resources to the Middle East and the Korean peninsula. The threat of war with North Korea is real, and the U.S. military has sent several ships and other assets to the region in a show of force — and to respond to any attacks from North Korea.
The deployment of cargo planes to deliver hurricane relief supplies could leave soldiers in the Middle East on the ground a few weeks longer than planned. And when they are ready to leave, they might have to catch a non-military flight back to the U.S.
In addition to Naval assets, the National Guard has mobilized thousands of troops and is using helicopters, troops, and planes to ferry supplies around and deliver them to hard-hit areas.
Helicopter crews from the National Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, and other agencies and branches of service rescued thousands of people stranded in floods because of the hurricanes.
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