An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | April 22, 2008

JISCC Team

By Sgt. Lee Elder 118th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - A new mobile communications system debuted during an emergency exercise here that will allow individuals and agencies to keep talking even during the direst circumstances.

The 230th Signal Company, a Nashville-based Tennessee Army National Guard unit, set up the Joint Incident Site Communication Capability (JISCC) system to support operations connected with Operation Vigilant Guard 08.

"We are on our first trial and everything has gone well so far," said Sgt. Anthony Henry, a computer systems analyst from Milton. "We haven't had any problems with it so far."

Vigilant Guard 08 is an exercise testing the state and local agency's response to a simulated earthquake along the famed New Madrid fault line. The 230th fielded the $600,000 system just two weeks after adding it to the unit inventory.

The system has an array of computer and communications equipment and comes with its own tent. However, the system can also be set up inside a standing structure and be up and running in an hour's time.

"It takes less time if we get a hard building," Henry said.

The system can be deployed by truck or by using a C-130 aircraft said Henry, who has been in the National Guard for seven years and currently works at Nissan in Smyrna. It was set up this particular day in support of the exercise's Joint Information Center at the Mid-South Naval Support Center.

The focal point of the system is a 33-foot antenna. It gives the system capabilities to communicate over high frequency, ultra high frequency, very high frequency and 800 megahertz channels.

"We can enable fire and police departments to talk to each other even if they have different systems," Henry said. "We can bring together radio systems, cell phones and landlines."

This capability is vital in the aftermath of a disaster. Often communications systems are totally knocked out in the aftermath of a fire or an earthquake.

That's where the JISCC team comes into play. Headed by 2nd Lt. Douglas Long, the 10-member team is available on a two-hour notice and is designed to respond on the scene within six hours of a serious incident.

Besides the 10 team members, there are also six alternate members, Long said. These members would be called in case primary team members are unavailable when an emergency arises.

The team members and their alternates were both involved in 24-hour operations supporting the exercise that simulates a 7.6-scale earthquake that levels Memphis and the surrounding areas.

Another of the team members is 31-year Guard veteran Sgt. 1st Class Anthony Cogdill. A Hohenwald resident, Cogdill is also a longtime employee of Tennessee Gas.

Holding up an FM radio, Cogdill said the JISCC system gave him the capability to call any cellular telephone or home telephone number. It can bring divergent communication systems so they can cross talk.

"If we do have an event like this ever happen, we can make sure everybody keeps talking," Cogdill said.

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Air Force dental technician completes a dental X-ray for a local resident during Operation Healthy Tennessee, Rhea County Middle School, Evensville, Tenn., July 10, 2025. Operation Healthy Tennessee provides no-cost medical, dental, vision and veterinary services to the residents of Bledsoe and Rhea County, as well as the surrounding areas while satisfying training requirements for active-duty, reserve and Air National Guard service members and units.
Operation Healthy Tennessee: Where Readiness Meets Relief
By Staff Sgt. Sarah Stalder Lundgren, | July 22, 2025
EVENSVILLE, Tenn. - More than 200 service members from the U.S. Air Force, Air National Guard, U.S. Army Reserve, U.S. Navy Reserve and U.S. Air Force Reserve participated in Operation Healthy Tennessee, part of the...

Soldiers from the Oregon Army National Guard's 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) returned home July 19, 2025, following a successful year-long deployment to Kosovo as part of the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) mission. The members were enthusiastically greeted by friends and family as they made their way into the Camp Withycombe gymnasium in Happy Valley, Oregon.
Oregon Guard Brigade Returns After Kosovo Deployment
By Maj. Wayne Clyne, | July 22, 2025
CLACKAMAS, Ore. - Soldiers from the Oregon Army National Guard's 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, or IBCT, returned home July 19 after a successful year-long deployment to Kosovo as part of the NATO-led Kosovo Force...

U.S. Army Maj. Troy Dandrea, brigade chaplain, 17th Sustainment Brigade, prays over Soldiers in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Dec. 14, 2024.
Nevada Guard Brigade Returning From Middle East Deployment
By Sgt. Adrianne Lopez, | July 22, 2025
LAS VEGAS - After 10 months of conducting logistical operations across the Middle East, the Nevada Army National Guard’s 17th Sustainment Brigade is coming back home to the Silver State with its Task Force Warrior mission...