BEAUFORT, S.C. - The media is invited to participate in a disaster preparedness exercise called Vigilant Guard that will test the capabilities and interoperability of local regional and state level first responders including the South Carolina National Guard, the state's first military responders.
Vigilant Guard is a three-day, National Guard-hosted exercise beginning April 21 in Beaufort, S.C. The exercise is designed to test the ability of the National Guard, along with federal, state, and local "first responders," to react to a domestic emergency. This year's scenario will be a mock 7.3 earthquake centered in Beaufort County.
More than 3,000 participants will flow into Beaufort County and exercise a variety of capabilities to include search and rescue in collapsed buildings, medical triage and evacuation of patients, and the care and feeding of displaced citizens in several outlying Low Country communities. Additionally a C-130 aircraft will land at the Hilton Head airport to test emergency evacuation plans. The exercise will test the capabilities of local first responders to integrate with National Guard troops as they respond to the emergency needs of the community.
Media representatives are invited to attend an exercise briefing at 9 a.m. (EDT) on Monday, April 21, at the South Carolina National Guard Joint Information Center, 144 Shanklin Road. Following the brief media will be able to observe operations at various sites throughout the county to include:
- Search and extraction at a rubble pile simulating several collapsed building
- Field medical hospital treating wounded casualties
- Medical triage and aerial evacuation at four regional hospitals.