BOXER LAMBASTES GUARD SHORTAGE ARMY OFFICIAL SAYS EQUIPMENT SPREAD THIN.

Byline: LISA FRIEDMAN

Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON -- Deployment of California National Guard officers, trucks and equipment to Iraq has threatened the guard's ability to respond to a major disaster in the state, acting U.S. Army Secretary Peter Geren has acknowledged.

In a letter to California Sen. Barbara Boxer, he said the state's National Guardsmen have "adequate capability to respond to small and medium domestic missions." But, he warned, "equipment shortages could potentially limit their capability to fully respond to large-scale emergencies such as a catastrophic earthquake or major flood."

Boxer released the letter Wednesday and lambasted President George W. Bush's Iraq policies, saying the war had left Americans at risk at home.

But California's National Guard adjutant general, Major Gen. William H. Wade, refuted the Army's conclusions and said the state is fully prepared to respond to all types of disasters.

"The National Guard has always been ready," Wade said. "We have never failed to respond to any emergency. There are multiple resources that we can get, and we will exercise every one of those if the need arises."

Congress has long questioned the domestic preparedness of the National Guard, particularly as a growing number of its members have been deployed to Iraq. As recently as May, the state National Guard warned that disaster response could be slower as a result.

In California, about 3,600 National Guard officers are federalized, with about 1,400 serving in Iraq and the rest in Afghanistan, South Asia or various parts of the United States. In addition, about 200 pieces of California equipment are in Iraq, including Humvees, fuel trucks and cargo trucks.

In a letter Wednesday to Bush, Boxer said she was alarmed by Geren's letter.

"As a senator from a state where such disasters are far too common, I urge you to take immediate action to ensure that our National Guard is fully prepared to respond to domestic emergencies," Boxer said.

Wade, however, said the percentage of equipment in Iraq is small. The real problem, he said, is that the National Guard doesn't have much equipment to begin with -- and what it does have is out of date and in poor condition.

"The war fight is not what concerns me," he said. "We never had the equipment to begin with."

But Eric Lamoureux, spokesman for the governor's Office of Emergency Services, said the state is prepared to deal with any disaster.

"The National Guard is certainly a significant asset, but they're part of a larger toolbox," Lamoureux said, noting that the state can call upon police, firefighters and other disaster-response units from other states under mutual-aid agreements.

As for the Guard's equipment shortfall, he said, "I don't think it's something that should alarm people."

lisa.friedman(at)langnews.com

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