Photo By Joseph Siemandel | Survey team members from the 10th Civil Support Team conduct a hazardous material...... read more read more
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Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is one of the nation’s busiest airports, servicing 51.8 million passengers and nearly 500,000 metric tons of cargo annually. It’s also one of the busiest ports of entry into the United States for foreign travel. Those are solid reasons for why the 10th Civil Support Team joined up with the Port of Seattle Fire Department and observers from the state Department of Health for a hazardous material recon and detection exercise at the fire department training area on Nov. 18, 2020.
“The scenario was simple -- a passenger from a foreign country carries a hazardous material with them on a flight,” said Maj. Wes Watson, commander of the 10th Civil Support Team. “It is detected as they enter customs, but now we need to survey the plane and help clear the scene. While it is simple, it is also a very complex exercise.”
The exercise started with a team from the Port of Seattle Fire Department identifying that they have found radiological materials on the plane. The Port calls for assistance and the 10th Civil Support Team rolls out from Camp Murray. Within an hour, the team deployed, arrived and began set up on the tarmac next to a training plane, all while Alaska, Southwest and Delta flights were taking off and landing.
“We are built to rapidly deploy for these types of scenarios,” Watson said. “We have the training and our team is always rehearsing for these types of events.”
Survey team members swept the plane for hazardous material readings. Once identified and marked, the team roped off the area. The team then suited up and entered the plane, sweeping the area and securing samples that would be transferred to the lab for readings.
This exercise was not only unique for the experience of working beside an active runway, but the ability to have multiple agencies including the Department of Health, Port Fire Hazmat and FBI-WMD.
“In these types of incidents, we would be working with multiple agencies, not just the Port of Seattle Fire, so getting multiple points of view and observations during an exercise builds that relationship,” Watson said.
While the Civil Support Team has deployed for multiple Presidential Inaugurations, Super Bowls and even the Indianapolis 500, the chance to work with first responders in the state is the true focus of the unit.
“We are a national-level asset, but we know that Washingtonians come first and anything we can do to help protect our state is our team’s ultimate focus,” Watson said.
| Date Taken: | 11.19.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 11.23.2020 19:26 |
| Story ID: | 383623 |
| Location: | SEATAC, WA, US |
| Web Views: | 185 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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