FORT BRAGG, N.C. - Army and Air National Guard units from across the southeastern United States gathered throughout North Carolina to participate in Vigilant Guard North Carolina, a training exercise that brought together civilian and Guard first responders to train side-by-side in a variety of scenarios based around a large scale disaster event.
"We have the opportunity to learn from each other," said Sgt. 1st Class Chancy Ivey, with the Georgia Army National Guard's 877th Engineer Company. "They're learning from us [and] we're learning from them. It enhances everything for the greater good and the bigger picture."
Vigilant Guard opened doors for both Guard members and local first responders with a realistic training scenario that included role players with injuries and wounds made to look as realistic as possible through special effects make-up and moulage kits.
During one part of the exercise, Guard members worked with local first responders in a mass casualty evacuation operation. As the service members moved through the buildings and brought the "victims" to the decontamination point, local first responders stepped in with ambulances ready to go for their part of the mission and provide follow-on care.
"We actually did some search-and-extraction where we had victims spread out through different buildings and we had to locate them and identify what their symptoms were, remove them safely and take them through the whole decontamination process in case there were any kind of chemical or biological agents out there," said Spc. Charles Reynolds, of the 877th Eng. Co. "That was pretty helpful to have real actors out there instead of just dummies."
And bringing together larger elements in a realistic setting is one of the important aspects of Vigilant Guard.
"This is a very important exercise to train to perfect the response of the National Guard to a large natural disaster, or some big event where there are a lot of people that are hurt," said Army Maj. Gen. Perry Smith, adjutant general of the Alabama National Guard. "This unit is trained to show up rapidly and to take over after the first responders have exhausted their capabilities. These Soldiers and Airmen ... come in to that area to save lives and to reduce the suffering of those individuals who will have been hurt by this incident. They're here to train, to practice what they would do if there were an event. The more they practice the better they get."
Those training here as part of Vigilant Guard bring with them a variety of experience in their fields of expertise.
"These Soldiers, if you look around, most have a combat patch on," said Smith. "They've served in Afghanistan and in Iraq, as well as in exercises like this. Not only do we go to war but we are also here to take care of the citizens in case there are some issues like this to come up. The National Guard's got it."
As the exercise continues, the Guard members will continue to perfect their skills.
"They're here to train, to practice what they would do if there was an event," said Smith. "The more they practice, the better they get. They are ready to respond to any incident like that, but it is because of important exercises like Vigilant Guard that they are ready to respond."