1st Lt. Cynthia Montalvo Earns the Army’s Safety Guardian Award

Photo By Sgt. Maxine Baen | 1st Lt. Cynthia Montalvo, a signal officer assigned to the 63rd Expeditionary Signal Battalion, 35th Corps Signal Brigade, received the Department of the Army Safety Guardian Award on March 7, 2023.  

FORT STEWART, GA, UNITED STATES

03.14.2023

Story by Sgt. Maxine Baen 

35th Corps Signal Brigade

FORT STEWART, GA. – 1st Lt. Cynthia Montalvo, a signal officer assigned to the 63rd Expeditionary Signal Battalion, 35th Corps Signal Brigade, received the Department of the Army Safety Guardian Award on March 7, 2023.

On June 28, 2021, Montalvo was responsible for the welfare of 38 Soldiers during a signal validation exercise – testing the line-of-sight capability of a Tropospheric Scatter Transmission (TROPO) – between Fort Stewart and Paris Island, S.C. Despite submitting and obtaining airspace clearance between the two sites, Montalvo spotted a helicopter approaching the restricted training area.

“When I saw the helicopter, my first thought was to stay vigilant and monitor their actions because I knew that we had exclusive use on the range and had been granted air clearance,” Said Montalvo.

Once she saw that the aircraft was getting too close and was in danger of the radiation emitted by the equipment, she started going through the emergency procedures she had developed while preparing for the mission.

“The moment I spotted the helicopter landing in our airspace, I sprinted over to my Soldiers and told them to halt the radiation,” Montalvo said. “I immediately instructed my team leaders to shut down the non-ionizing radiation transmission emitted by the TROPO as fast as they could.”

A TROPO communicates using a microwave band beginning at 1000 megahertz; exposure to that amount of radiation can cause serious burns and tissue damage which is why Montalvo knew it was crucial to have the equipment immediately shut down. After directing her teams to shut down their equipment, the helicopter entered the reserved airspace and landed within the troposcatter's line-of-sight.

“TROPOs utilize microwave bands; it can be compared to a household microwave on steroids. When first being trained on the equipment, I was told that they could kill birds if they crossed its path, so I knew the potential harm it could cause a living thing,” said Montalvo.

Montalvo notified Fort Stewart and Paris Island’s Range Controls of the event, and informed them of the hazards associated with the helicopter landing on a range actively transmitting non-ionizing radiation.

“Once I saw that the helicopter landed, I immediately contacted range control over the radio and reported the presence of the aircraft in our training area. The message was relayed quickly, and the helicopter took off again; it was impressive to see how fast range control got the news across to them,” said Montalvo.

Col. Bernard Brogan, the commander of the 35th Corps Signal Brigade, spoke to the importance of leaders willing to jump into action, saying, “ Montalvo is the epitome of what right looks like. We need leaders like her who aren't afraid to speak up and are quick to jump into action when they see or feel something isn't right, and because she trusted her gut – she was able to save equipment and possibly some lives.”

Montalvo stressed the importance of leaders preparing and team members willing to work together to accomplish the mission, saying, “I can not stress enough how important it is to have a good plan, but equally important are the leaders who execute it. I am genuinely grateful to have such outstanding leaders, and I could not have done it without them.”

The Army Safety Guardian Award is awarded to Soldiers and DA Civilians who demonstrate extraordinary actions or skills by reacting to an emergency event or an imminently dangerous situation, thereby eliminating or minimizing loss, such as damage to Army property or injury to Army personnel.

• Date Taken: 03.14.2023
• Date Posted: 03.15.2023 10:13
• Story ID: 440378
• Location: FORT STEWART, GA, US