FORT SAM HOUSTON, TEXAS – U.S. Army North (Fifth Army), U.S. Northern Command’s Joint Force Land Component Command, will host approximately 5,500 military and civilian personnel from across the country to take part in a major training exercise to simulate the response to a terrorist attack in the United States.
The exercise, named Vibrant Response, takes place July 30 to Aug. 17 at Camp Atterbury, Ind., and surrounding areas.
The training will include urban and aerial search and rescue missions, simulated decontamination operations, airlift, medical training and many other events, which offer excellent still photo and video opportunities.
Army North’s Joint Task Force 51 and the Alabama National Guard will lead the forces of the two Command and Control Contingency Response Elements (C2CRE-A/B) during the first half of the exercise.
Joint Task Force – Civil Support, based at Fort Eustis, Va., and members of the Defense Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear Response Force will work with other federal, state and local emergency responders during the second half of the exercise.
The DCRF and C2CREs are organized into four task forces: Task Force Operations, Task Force Aviation, Task Force Medical and Task Force Sustainment. Their capabilities include CBRN technical rescue, decontamination, aviation, medical, logistics and other functions.
Army North, when directed by the commander of U.S. Northern Command, deploys response forces to support to civil authorities in order to save lives, prevent further injury and provide temporary critical support.
Exercise Vibrant Response is a dynamic field training and command post exercise where media will see multi-story building and tunnel searches, rubble pile extractions, medical treatment of patients and aero-medical evacuations. .
To cover this event, media should contact Don Manuszewski at 210-221-0754, 210-482-9303 or e-mail Donald.e.manuszewski.civ@mail.mil.
NOTE: The U.S. Army North media relations team will have the satellite capability to conduct live and taped interviews with media throughout the United States and abroad. Additionally, footage of the exercise will be available at: http://bit.ly/1dUJNQO.