Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Meillettis Gardner | Mendi Cox, of 547th Area Support Medical Company escorts a patience, after a...... read more read more
MUTCATATUCK URBAN TRAINING CENTER, Ind. – Emergency vehicles scream from all directions as they maneuver through the streets of Mutcatatuck Urban Training Complex. They pass smoke, fire and flooded buildings, disaster at every glance.
The Soldiers of Fort Polk 1st Maneuver Enhancement Brigade worked with Joint Task Force Civil Support (JTF-CS) and local authorities, at Camp Atterbury, Ind. and (MUTC), for the Defense CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear) response force (DCRF) mission July 27 through July Aug 4, during field training Vibrant response 13. The exercise prepares the unit for response to catastrophic disasters.
The mission was all about Americans helping American, said Mendi Cox of 547th Area Support Medical Company, as she supported the chemical team 44th CBRN company by escorting patience’s that were in the vicinity of a mock blast at the MUTC, July 29.
The Soldiers have trained and are motivated to care for the American people in their time of disaster and distress.
“It (the disaster) makes you feel horrible for them,” said Cox. “I don’t want that to happen to anyone, especially Americans.”
Compassion is needed to care for American while they are rescued. Some are in shook, dazed and confuse. The 46th Engineer Battalion learned this first hand during the technical rescue and chemical decon missions.
“This is a very complex training site they have before them,” said David Yandon, from U.S Army North, a survey analyst with civil support teams.
There is a collapsed parking garage. They had victim they had to account for both outside the facility and inside, some were ambulatory, some were not, some were trapped in vehicles, said Yandon.
We encountered personnel that were exposed to radiation all over, said Spc. Kyle Lowmack, of 178th Engineer Company, 46th Engineer Battalion. Outside the building we had a mass number of affected population, people that were trapped in collapsed structures and vehicles.
This situation is a problem, said Lowmack, Which is the reason we are out here --to prevent human suffering, so anything they throw at us we overcame.
“In the end it’s rewarding,” said Lowmack, “were just here to help.”
Once they were able to extract and account for the all personnel outside then they had to get inside the parking garage, said Yandon, and do some very technical rescue operations to account for injured personnel.
“It’s a long, tough effort but they have excelled at what they’re doing,” said Yandon.
Each day they will be presented with an entirely different facility and a different set of challenges, said Yandon. Just because of the complexity of this specific facility that their working on, this provides a training opportunity that I believe they won’t find in any other location.
The 1st MEB is conducting realistic training to prepare the Soldiers for a disaster. Everything is thrown at the units of JTF-CS and it takes each unit doing its part to make this mission a success.
“You are going to see stuff that makes you sick,” said Col. Bret Van Camp, commander of 1st MEB. “People are going to be scare. We have to be compassionate.”
For 519th Military Police BN saving lives is what it’s all about. They work hard to help sustain life in the field but when the mission is on American soil, the job takes on a whole new meaning.
Military police from 519th and medical personnel from 690th Medical Company, attached to 519 Military Police Battalion, convey from of Forward Out Base Panther on July 30, for a mission located at the MUTC to conduct a wellness exercise an search and rescue as part of operation Vibrant Response.
“It was really stressful but we got it done,” said Spc. Anith Crookshank, of the 272nd Military Police Company, 519th MP, BN.
“Were here aiding and saving Americans,” said Crookshank.“I think we did a really great job.”
Military Police and medical teams quickly dismounted their vehicles and began shouting and looking for injured citizens during a wellness check exercise. They provide help with medical assistance, food, water or medical evacuation.
The mission was to help as many people as we can and get them out of the area as quickly as possible so they can get some medical care, said Spc. Nathaneal Hamblain, of 272nd MP Company, 519th MP BN.
“For limited amount of resources and descriptions as far as casualties, we work cohesively with the MP unit and accomplished the mission,” said Sgt. Nicholas Bunch, triage NCO of 690th Med. Co.
You see the pain, suffering, injuries that they have mocked up, said Bunch, and that severs as your motivation to make the mission successful.
Brig. Gen. Clarence K.K. Chinn, Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk Commanding General and Command Sgt. Major LaMarquis Knowles, of Fort Polk arrived on Aug 1, to check on Soldiers.
| Date Taken: | 07.29.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 09.02.2012 16:08 |
| Story ID: | 94145 |
| Location: | CAMP ATTERBURY, INDIANA, US |
| Web Views: | 171 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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