LIMESTONE - Officials say 120 Humvees that were refurbished at the Maine Military Authority facility at Loring Commerce Centre were expected to arrive in the hurricaneravaged Gulf Coast by today.

The vehicles, three to each tractor trailer transport, left the MMA facility Tuesday aboard 40 trucks, and they were expected to arrive in the New Orleans area within four days. Each of the tractor-trailers had two drivers who planned to share the driving.

The Humvees were being delivered to National Guard units working in the relief and recovery effort.

"They cleaned out our yards of units ready for service," Gary Cleaves, manager of the MMA, said Friday. "They took everything we had. "We are doing 10 or so units a day," he said. "They could be asking for more." Cleaves said the order for the units came Sept. 1. By Tuesday, they were loaded and headed south.

National Guard units from Louisiana were called back from Iraq recently to work
in their home states. Those and other units called in to help in the area needed vehicles. The vehicles being used by the Louisiana National Guard stayed behind in Iraq.

"This can be done anytime there is an immediate need for these vehicles," Cleaves said. "The movement needs to take place quickly, as it was in this case."

The military authority operates in eight buildings at the commerce center and employs more than 460 people. More expansions are expected, and announcements will come in a few months.

The 460 jobs are a big part of the Loring Commerce Centre's 1,360 jobs, all created since the Loring base closed in 1994.

The MMA facility is looking to grow to as many as 700 jobs in the near future.

The facility also refurbishes other kinds of military vehicles and equipment. Only Humvees were shipped south this week.