Photo By Master Sgt. Daniel Griego | In this image, engineers from the 836th Engineer Company, part of the 6th CBRNE...... read more read more
SAN ANTONIO - The National Guard has a long history of supporting the citizens of the United States with worldwide deployments as well as stateside disaster response. One Texas Guard unit, the 836th Engineer Company, must maintain proficiency in two very different mission sets, those of combat breaching and clearing, and of life-saving search and extraction. For one week from July 12 through 18 at Camp Bullis in San Antonio, these Guardsmen trained on and refined their two disparate objectives during their summer annual training period.
"This is actually a great opportunity for us to come out here and hone our skills," said Sgt. 1st Class Jason D. Sanchez, a platoon sergeant with the 836th Engineer Company. "It's been a while since we've done demolitions, but we definitely are getting back to our greener side. Engineers have always been the people that you call on to breach and obstacle or go around it or through it. We're the type of people you call when you can't get through."
The Soldiers refer to their deployment mission as "green" while their stateside mission of disaster response and inter-agency cooperation is characterized as "white."
"The white mission complements us well because we're really good at planning and we practice our troop leading procedures," said Sanchez. "Fundamentally, it works really well for us because we're already well-structured."
Their green training during the week included barrier breaching with the use of explosive charges. Tasks such as breaking through doors and frame demolition helped to maintain the warfighting skills for the unit whose last deployment was in 2009. As qualified Sappers, these combat engineers are trained in some of the most specialized and detail-oriented work in the Army, and precision is the key to success.
"My favorite part," said Pfc. Victor Roque, a combat engineer with the company, "was the breaching and the clearing rooms with the water impulse charge and the doughnut charge, getting that adrenaline rush."
Following these maneuvers, the engineers practiced the life-saving rescue drills associated with their role as a contributor to the FEMA Region VI Homeland Response Force mission. During the daylong collective exercise held July 17 that included their battalion headquarters and the Austin Fire Department's Special Operations team, they practiced their extraction techniques, rappelling, and civil authority cooperation.
"This applies to our overall mission in the Guard by showing the command our versatility," said Sanchez. "Not only do we dig holes and construct stuff but it's also an explosive field where we can show the commander that he has broader options when it comes to sensitive missions."
This training additionally feeds into the company's internal culminating event scheduled for November, during which they will integrate the breaching standards into scaled scenarios, complete weapons qualification, and conduct other warrior tasks.
"It's truly the essence of what the National Guard brings," said Col. Lee Schnell, the commander of Joint Task Force 136 (Maneuver Enhancement Brigade), the higher headquarters for the engineers. "We bring the ability to do our wartime mission and also train for our defense support to civil authorities, so it's just an incredible thing to see."
By engaging these two fields of Army engineering and keeping their skills fresh, the 836th fosters confidence in the public that no matter the mission, they are ready to serve.
"This is what I signed up for," said Roque. "This is good; this is good stuff."
| Date Taken: | 07.17.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 07.21.2014 19:03 |
| Story ID: | 136823 |
| Location: | SAN ANTONIO, TX, US |
| Web Views: | 74 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Texas Guardsmen train for stateside relief, combat, by MSG Daniel Griego, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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