Fort Carson EOD troops train for expeditionary fight

Courtesy Photo | The Fort Carson, Colorado-based 748th EOD Company trained for night operations on Fort Irwin, Calif.  

FORT IRWIN, CA, UNITED STATES

01.06.2015

Story by Walter Ham  

20th CBRNE Command

FORT IRWIN, California - U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians honed their expeditionary warfighting capabilities here at the National Training Center.

Soldiers from the Fort Carson, Colorado-based 748th EOD Company and 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division trained together on Fort Irwin.

Nine EOD teams and the headquarters element from the 748th EOD Company supported the 3-4th ABCT during its decisive action training rotation at the U.S. Army's premier desert combat training center.

The 748th EOD Company is assigned to the 242nd EOD Battalion, 71st EOD Group, 20th CBRNE Command (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives), the U.S. Defense Department's only formation that combats global CBRNE threats.

In 2014, the Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland-based 20th CBRNE Command began integrating its specialized CBRNE formations into decisive action training rotations with combat units at the National Training Center and Joint Readiness Training Center on Fort Polk, Louisiana.

Trained to identify and disarm a wide variety of explosive devices, the Army EOD Soldiers conducted day and night battlefield operations during the exercise.

Soldiers from the 242nd EOD Battalion are responsible for explosive mitigation operations in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and Montana, an area totaling over 433,000 square miles.

According to 748th EOD Company Commander Capt. Jeffrey Muir, the exercise prepared his Soldiers for any fight.

"The training value was immense and expertly resourced out of NTC," said Muir, a Concord, New Hampshire native who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"It tested and supported a warrior training focus while sharpening our individual Soldier skills along with enhancing our primary focus area -- the Brigade Combat Team integration of EOD capabilities," said Muir.

• Date Taken: 01.06.2015
• Date Posted: 01.06.2015 13:11
• Story ID: 151423
• Location: FORT IRWIN, CA, US