Photo By Cpl. Codey Underwood | A Slovenian soldier takes necessary notes while documenting a simulated casualty with...... read more read more
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VIPAVA, Slovenia - According to the U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center, the world encounters an average of 50 earthquakes per day. Cradled deep in the Slovenian mountains, an exercise took place where the chance of tectonic plate movements that cause natural disasters is high, and it happens quite frequently. Earthquakes can displace civilians, damage property and even cause deaths.
The Marines with Personnel Retrieval and Processing Company, 4th Marine Logistics Group, Marine Forces Reserve, trained to respond to natural disasters such as earthquakes, with nations from all over the globe during exercise Immediate Response 2014.
Exercise Immediate Response 14 is a command-post and tactical field training exercise that involves more than 900 personnel primarily from the U.S., Slovenian and Croatian armed forces, with contingents from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and the United Kingdom.
The earthquake training scenario was the culminating event of the exercise and took place from Aug. 25-27, 2014. The exercise itself took place from Aug. 18-31, 2014.
The multinational team tested their abilities during several key portions of the culminating event in humanitarian assistance disaster relief missions including search and rescue, explosive ordinance disposal, medical and evacuation techniques. During the simulation, the Marines with PRP processed ‘fallen heroes’ alongside Slovenian soldiers.
The week prior to the culminating event, the PRP Marines demonstrated their personnel recovery methods to Slovenian soldiers. This gave them the insight they needed to perform the job during the training scenario.
“We train as we fight and we fight as we train. With HADR missions, it is the same concept,” said Cpl. Joseph Nde Fah, a squad leader with the PRP platoon. “If we never train to come here and help, then we would never know the protocols. It is better for us to make a mistake during training and learn from it than waiting until it is a real-life operation.”
PRP’s mission is to process the physical remains of deceased Marines, including other service members and civilians, ensuring everything they arrived at the disaster site with, he or she returns home with. Documenting every detail and leaving everything how they found it is important for investigators. The preservation of the remains can help determine the cause of death, and also save lives in the future by improving the design of protective equipment.
Although the PRP Marines played only a small role in the culminating event, their mission is essential to HADR events.
“It is an honor to take the bearing and load of a job not everybody wants because I know that my Marines and I are strong enough to complete the mission,” said Sgt. Anthony Latney, the PRP platoon sergeant. “There are days when it is difficult, but we are there for one another to remind one another that what we do here matters.”
During the culminating event, the Marines worked closely with Slovenian soldiers to ensure everything the Marines taught them in the previous week was retained. They quickly removed the casualties from the disaster site, documented the state of the deceased and inspected their belongings. Working together in the training environment allowed the Slovenian solders time to practice what they learned, and ask the Marines any last-minute questions before the completion of the exercise.
“This exercise gives my Marines a chance to reinforce what they already know, and gives them an opportunity to teach to other nations,” said Latney. “This knowledge is something that the Slovenian soldiers will be able to pass down to their junior soldiers. Utilizing this training is not an ‘if it will happen’, it is a ‘when it will happen’.”
Training events such as this help prepare the U.S., Slovenia and its partner nations, to operate in a joint, multinational, interagency and integrated environment in situations such as a natural disaster.
| Date Taken: | 08.26.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 09.08.2014 12:17 |
| Story ID: | 141412 |
| Location: | VIPAVA , SI |
| Web Views: | 77 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Exercise helps Reserve Marines prepare for natural disasters, by Cpl Codey Underwood, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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