Update: Republic Airport Designated Staging Area for Emergency Operations

is among the sites that Gov. Andrew Cuomo deployed the first of around 1,000 New York National Guard troops to Saturday afternoon.

The Farmingdale airport will be used as a staging area for the National Guard and other emergency service providers to distribute water, ready to eat meals and emergency generators if they are needed in the wake of Hurricane Irene. The governor has also signed a memo with the federal Secretary of Defense for joint command of the troops and says FEMA will also be bringing in supplies.

FEMA and other emergency response agencies will base their operations at the airport.

Out-of-state emergency crews arrived on at the airport late Friday night. The crews were contracted by the Suffolk County Office of Emergency Management from various ambulance companies in Ohio. They will stage out of Republic Airport. FEMA has directed additional generators to the airport and they are scheduled to arrive on tractor trailers in the afternoon, airport spokesman Gary Lewi said.

The airport will close if winds exceed 65 mph, but that the facility is prepared for the storm.

"The airport has been aggressively removing any loose materials throughout the complex that could become airborne and damage aircraft or hangars," Lewi said.

Lewi said that fuel tanks were been topped off Friday to provide fuel for emergency purposes and that airport staff have equipment positioned to remove any debris that accumulates on the runways or taxiways during the storm.

Due to the current anticipated time of storm’s arrival, the airport will bring in its operations staff early so that they are not driving in the storm and are pre-positioned for severe weather.