Territorial Army joins coronavirus fight: MoD will call up 3,000 reservists to help NHS and bolster regular troop numbers for the next six months
- COVID Support Force will have 3,000 new members to add to 20,000 on ground
- So far Army has helped to build Nightingale field hospitals and transport meds
- They will be deployed for 6 months but this will be kept under review, says MOD
- Coronavirus symptoms: what are they and should you see a doctor?
The Territorial Army will mobilise 3,000 reservists to help the NHS in the desperate battle against coronavirus.
The Ministry of Defence is deploying the troops to add to the 20,000 regular personnel already working to build field hospitals and transport medical supplies around the country.
Only part-time members of the Army, RAF and Royal Navy with specialist skills including engineering or logistics will be summoned, according to the Ministry of Defence.
The reservists are initially being deployed for six months, but this will be kept under review.
The military force helping the NHS and local Government to tackle the virus, which has killed 2,352 people, has been branded the COVID Support Force.
They have already built a 4,000-bed hospital at the ExCeL exhibition centre in east London, which could open its doors to patients by the end of the week.
Three thousands Army reservists are joining the fight against coronavirus, to add to the 20,000 regular personal already part of the COVID Support Force (pictured at London’s ExCeL Centre where a new field hospital is opening)
It comes after the Army deployed 80 further troops to help the ambulance service deal with the virus outbreak.
They will be given first aid training and will help drive emergency vehicles and take 999 calls for the South Central Ambulance Service, which covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Sussex and Surrey.
The extra staff will mean an extra 20 to 30 ambulances will be able to operate each day – a 10 per cent increase on its normal 180 to 200.
Between 400 and 500 of the force’s 3,300 ambulance workers are currently off sick due to symptoms or are self-isolating because someone is their household has them.
An MOD spokesman said in a statement: ‘It is expected that 3,000 reservists will be required as part of this tranche and will initially be mobilised for six months, to be kept under review,’ the ministry said.
Soldiers from the 1 Royal Anglian Regiment are pictured helping build the field hospital at London’s ExCeL Centre
‘The Reserve Forces will be used to help deliver a range of activities, such as providing additional medical and logistical support for the NHS, acting as liaison officers and deploying specialist skills such as engineering and accounting.’
‘I know that our reservists will answer the nation’s call with a real enthusiasm and will play a key part in our response to COVID-19.’
James Heappey, the armed forces minister, told Sky News: ‘Our reservists are a truly remarkable group of people, each with their own skills and experience from their civilian careers beyond the armed forces.
‘At times like there, to be able to draw on that pool of talent and expertise is invaluable.
‘I know that our reservists will answer the nation’s call with a real enthusiasm and will play a key part in our response to COVID-19.’
The Army deployed 80 further troops to help the ambulance service deal with the virus outbreak. Pictured: Ambulances outside the ExCeL Centre