CBMU 202 conducts Expeditionary Medical Facility Exercise

Courtesy Photo | Construction Electrician Constructionman Derek Sexton connects power to a tent being used during an integrated Expeditionary Medical Facilities exercise. During the exercise, Seabees from Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit 202 from Norfolk, Va., teamed with CBMU 303 and EMF Team 1 to erect and operate a field hospital at the Navy Expeditionary Training Institute. U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Raul Cuevas. /RELEASED/  

CAMP PENDLETON, CA, UNITED STATES

05.12.2012

Courtesy Story

25th Naval Construction Regiment

By CBMU 202 Public Affairs

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit 202 completed an integrated exercise with Naval Construction Force and medical support staff May 10, 2012, at Camp Pendleton as part of their Fleet Response Training Plan.

The CBMU team from Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek/Fort Story, Va., and from Detachments Jacksonville, Fla., Kings Bay, Ga., and Washington, D.C., joined forces with their sister unit CBMU 303 in San Diego, Calif., and Expeditionary Medical Facilities team ONE out of Dallas, to erect and operate a field hospital at the Navy Expeditionary Medical Training Institute.

“The team proved to be a winning combination and provided a fantastic training opportunity for both the NCF and BUMED (Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery),” said Lt. Cmdr. Russell Bates, CBMU 202 commanding officer.

Bates said Seabees led the project from the beginning of the build, to the installation of power distribution systems and environmental control units. Chief Utilitiesman Kenneth Kammer, the EMF Detachment officer-in-charge, led his team through 11 days of training and operations which included a period of classroom instruction, container familiarization, Table of Allowance equipment inventory and an EMF build consisting of more than 40 insulated temper tents, which provided emergency operating rooms, triage centers, X-ray facilities and 38 beds for inpatient care.

“This was invaluable to be able to go out and set up a fully functional EMF,” Kammer said. “Most of the troops on the Detachment have never worked with some of the equipment and they received good, hands-on training, not only for the EMF but as a Seabee installing field equipment,” he said.

In addition to the hospital facilities, Seabees also erected a field galley, portable showers and restrooms. Bates said this was the first time in more than seven years that Seabees participated in an EMF exercise.

Led by Kammer and Chief Construction Electrician Robert Mendez, the CBMU team of 30 Seabees made quick work of the projects while gaining valuable EMF skills, which helped re-establish the NCF/EMF relationship and core capability.

“The interaction between the two communities was seamless,” Mendez said. “Motivation and a sense ownership on both sides was the key recipe for mission completion,” he said.

Mendez said the familiarization and on the job training with the EMF TOA was essential for building the teams’ confidence and speed, and it greatly reduced the "fog of war" troops might have if they deployed during a real-world scenario.

“Troubleshooting techniques have always been sharpened in a training environment where time is a luxury,” Mendez said.

CBMU 202 is currently in their Basic phase of their FRTP cycle and completed the EMF exercise in conjunction with the Unit’s field training exercise, held at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek/Fort Story April 26 to May 6, 2012.

• Date Taken: 05.12.2012
• Date Posted: 06.11.2012 13:21
• Story ID: 89772
• Location: CAMP PENDLETON, CA, US