CAMP DENALI, ALASKA - Guard members from across the Nation are arriving in Alaska daily to participate in a joint exercise that combines the State of Alaska's Alaska Shield exercise, National Guard's Vigilant Guard exercise and Joint Task Force Alaska's Arctic Edge exercise to be held April 26 - May 1.
The exercise, which simulates a response to a large earthquake, includes more than 4,000 participants from 51 organizations and Guard units from seven states to include Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Hawaii, Oregon, Michigan and North Carolina.
With more than 300 Guardsmen arriving through the week to train and provide the essential capabilities needed to effectively respond to state emergencies, it's equally important to greet the incoming Soldiers and Airmen before sending them to the field at the Joint Reception Staging Onward Movement Integration or JRSOI.
The JRSOI centralizes and controls the movement of National Guardsmen arriving in Alaska and provides accountability to the joint task force commander.
"The JRSOI lets the commander know how many Guardsmen we have in Alaska from participating states in an emergency," said Lt. Col. John B. McShane, Jr., deputy chief of staff personnel, Alaska Army National Guard. "The centralized locations allow us to meet Guardsmen flowing in to Alaska and guide them to the location where their assistance is required."
As the Guardsmen arrive at one of three locations, Kulis Air National Guard Base, Elmendorf Air Force Base or the Alaska National Guard Armory on Fort Richardson, they receive a welcome message from Governor Sean Parnell and an overview briefing that covers the exercise along with safety, legal, public relations and local facility information.
"It's very important that we have visibility of all National Guardsmen flowing in to Alaska, because in a real emergency, time will equal American lives, and so it's important we get them here safely and quickly and out to the communities where they're needed," said Brig. Gen. Sharon Dieffenderfer, chief of joint staff for the Alaska National Guard.