CAMP CARROLL, Republic of Korea – While some units wind down training during the start of the holiday season, one company wanted to end its year on a high note with some back-to-basics training.
The 4th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear Company of the 23rd CBRN Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division Sustainment Brigade, conducted dismounted CBRN training— “Reaper Stakes”— from December 10-14, 2018, so that the Soldiers could improve CBRN capabilities.
Capt. Zane Lindquist, 4th CBRN company commander, said this training stemmed from changes to his unit’s mission and Soldiers requesting further training on specific tasks.
“In order to meet Eighth Army’s requirements, the company developed an aggressive training plan which will culminate in a company exercise evaluation in June of 2019. This is the fourth in a series of critical training events we have conducted thus far,” said Lindquist, a Kadoka, South Dakota native.
During the week, approximately 50 Soldiers conducted an aerial deployment from Camp Humphreys to Camp Carroll to be trained and validated on CBRN equipment familiarization, medical evacuation and casualty evacuation procedures and tactical movement.
Additionally, medics from the 35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade augmented the platoons during the squad training exercises, which afforded the Soldiers the unique opportunity to conduct troop leadership procedures and execute training with an embedded medic.
“Monday we went over all the equipment that we had to be familiarized with at all times during decontamination, which I haven’t seen since AIT (advanced individual training), so it was a nice refresher. On Wednesday, we had to carry someone on a litter for a mile and a half, that was pretty brutal,” said Pvt. Robert Lone, a CBRN specialist and Bare Lake, Michigan native.
During the training, Soldiers were tested mentally and physically as they were required to execute tasks and react to scenarios in high stress situations.
“My group did a mock mission one night, and the evaluators kept throwing different scenarios at us, and we had to react quickly,” Lone said. “I learned how hectic things can be. They tried to make it as realistic as possible how fast things can change so you’re always on your toes and you have to think a few steps ahead of what could happen.”
The company not only had to react to changing scenarios during the exercise, but in real life. Lindquist said his company dealt with a real world situation when their transportation to the life support area didn’t show up.
“I had 50 Soldiers, exhausted from training all day, exposed to the frigid December weather with no transportation to the only available life support area within 40 miles,” Lindquist said. “As soon as the problem arose, every one of my senior leaders surged into action.”
Lindquist said phones calls were made about resourcing transportation and inquiring about warm shelters around Camp Carroll, while squad leaders checked their Soldiers for cold weather injuries.
“It was incredible to see. This incident cemented my belief that I have the best cadre of senior NCOs and officers in the division,” Lindquist said.
Despite the intense, jam-packed week, the Soldiers felt the training was beneficial. Lone said he enjoyed learning how to be a radio telephone operator as it was something he’s never done before.
“I received extremely positive feedback from my Soldiers,” Lindquist said. “They feel that they are significantly better prepared to execute their individual tasks in support of the Company mission.”
| Date Taken: | 01.12.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 01.13.2019 10:35 |
| Story ID: | 306876 |
| Location: | WAEGWAN, KR |
| Web Views: | 703 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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