HAMMOND, La. – At this point, many of us have already thrown out our Christmas trees, but in Louisiana, these discarded trees serve an important purpose for the United States Army.
The trees are part of an annual mission called the Christmas Tree Drop. It serves as a training exercise for the Louisiana National Guard where guardsmen practice the skills they’ll use in an emergency.
“Repetition is the key to success,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Gabriel Ruiz. “The more we get to do it, the better we get at it.”
Aviators preparing to haul a bundle of Christmas trees. (Louisiana National Guard)
Parishes will be collecting discarded Christmas trees for the next several weeks. The next mission takes flight this spring.
“Everybody normally wants to jump on this mission,” Ruiz said. “People are already asking about who’s going to be on the roster for this flight.”
Rebekah Castor joined Fox News in 2021 as a multimedia reporter based in New Orleans.
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