Photo By Staff Sgt. Alexander Norred | U.S. Army Soldiers with the Marietta-based 201st Regional Support Group, Georgia Army...... read more read more
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U.S. National Guardsmen with the 201st Regional Support Group (RSG)’s Chemical, Biological, Radioactive, Nuclear (CBRN) Task Force, Georgia Army National Guard, and the Georgia State Defense Force (GSDF) conducted Vigilant Guard 26-1 in Anniston, Alabama from Dec. 2-5, 2025. The Georgia DoD conducted the training in order to train and refine their Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) in a Deployment Readiness Exercise.
The Vigilant Guard training event was designed to enhance National Homeland Defense Readiness by rehearsing interoperability between the Georgia Department of Defense (DoD), the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA), and federal and civilian partners. The 201st RSG fortified the skills needed to save lives in a simulated large-scale catastrophe.
“It is helpful to see how your role interacts and integrates to the larger mission overall.” says U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Ben Goins, an internal medicine physician with the CBRN Assistance Support Element (CASE) teams.
The CBRN Task Force was assisted by volunteers from other states as well as civilian role-players as they practiced their skills. They practiced decontamination procedures, search and rescue, casualty extraction and medical treatment while the CASE team and the National Guard Quick Response Force trained in security operations to enhance force protection. Simultaneously, GSDF personnel cleared abandoned cars and fallen trees from a simulated route and used remotely operated drones to practice route reconnaissance operations.
“It was great training for our servicemembers, especially for the DECON (Decontamination) element which is the 1160th [Transportation Company] taking on that new responsibility,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Yocoyani Villela, a manager for the CASE teams.
Vigilant Guard honed interagency cooperation in the event of a catastrophic CBRN incident or large-scale natural disaster. It also reinforced the Georgia DoD’s capabilities in supplementing GEMA and local responders on a short notice.
“I think this helps any soldier, whether it be senior enlisted or junior enlisted, just for the well-being of watching somebody, learning the training, in regard to if somebody needs some kind of assistance,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Victor Rodriguez, a motor vehicle operator with the Rome-based 1160th Transportation Company.
Vigilant Guard 26-1 successfully ended on December 5, after completing their training objectives with no degradation to personnel or equipment. Lessons that were learned from the event will be integrated into future training and real-world scenarios, enhancing force readiness for any eventuality.
| Date Taken: | 12.05.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 12.05.2025 14:45 |
| Story ID: | 553173 |
| Location: | ANNISTON, ALABAMA, US |
| Web Views: | 80 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, GA DoD Stays Vigilant During Homeland Response Exercise, by SGT Thomas Norris, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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