INDIANAPOLIS - Nearly $100 million will be invested in the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center over the next six years to transform it into a major training facility for the Army.
Governor Mitch Daniels, with Major General R. Martin Umbarger, the Adjutant General of the Indiana National Guard, announced today that the National Guard and the Department of the Army have entered into an agreement to partner in the transformation of Muscatatuck.
"This is the day General Umbarger and I have been working toward for two years. Muscatatuck will now become a major contributor to our national security, and a major contributor to the economy of southern Indiana," said Daniels.
Muscatatuck is located in Jennings County several miles from North Vernon. It previously was the site of the Muscatatuck State Development Center; the Indiana National Guard gained control of the land and buildings in July 2005.
The urban training center will be developed in two phases, beginning this year and extending to 2012. Muscatatuck will be transformed to replicate a city environment, in which Army units of all sizes can prepare for operations in urban settings. The Army will invest $97.3 million toward the operation and enhancement of the site. When fully operational, it is expected that 40,000 active and reserve component soldiers will train there each year.
"Muscatatuck will play a significant role in training soldiers and units to protect our country. Once we are fully operational, the Army will train significant numbers of Soldiers every year at this unique training facility," said Brigadier General Tom Maffey, director of training for the Department of Army.
The agreement calls for creation of support staff that will include about 290 fulltime civilian and military personnel. The National Guard will provide oversight of the project for the Army and manage the day-to-day activities.
"From the beginning, our vision has been to transform Muscatatuck into a national center of excellence for urban training, one focused on honing our nation's capability to respond to crisis both abroad and here in the homeland," said Umbarger. "Today's announcement marks the accomplishment of a major milestone on the road to fulfilling that vision."
In addition, the Indiana National Guard is proud to announce that it will conduct the first full-scale homeland defense preparedness exercise in Indiana from May 10 to May 18, much of it at Muscatatuck. The US Northern Command will conduct an exercise simultaneously in support of the state.
The two exercises will be conducted in coordination with each other so as to replicate a real-world response to a major terrorist attack in the homeland. The scenario will be that of a simulated detonation of a nuclear device in a major metropolitan area with Muscatatuck replicating the targeted city.
Indiana National Guard's exercise VIGILANT GUARD will be the first to be executed representing the National Guard's role as our nation's first military responder in time of domestic emergency. The exercise will involve the deployment of some 2,000 Guard soldiers into the exercise area employing their advanced terrorist response capabilities. The exercise, involving 450 local responders, will rigorously test the Guard's ability to support local and state civilian authorities, incident and unified commanders and the State Emergency Management Agency. As in a real-world response, the National Guard forces will be the first-in, last-out military response force in the combined exercise.
US Northern Command's exercise ARDENT SENTRY/NORTHERN EDGE 07 will replicate the federal military role in support of the lead federal agency reinforcing the capabilities of the local first responders and those of the National Guard already committed to this simulated crisis.