Gunnery Sgt. Christopher Pilats, the radio chief for

Gunnery Sgt. Christopher Pilats, the radio chief for Battalion Landing Team 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit and a native of Syracuse, N.Y., shovels trash into a dump truck in Staten Island, N.Y., Nov. 5. The 26th MEU is able to provide generators, fuel, clean water, and helicopter lift capabilities to aid in disaster relief efforts. The 26th MEU is currently conducting pre-deployment training, preparing for their departure in 2013. As an expeditionary crisis response force operating from the sea, the MEU is a Marine Air-Ground Task Force capable of conducting amphibious operations, crisis response, and limited contingency operations.