MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. — Suit up, get down range, assess the situation, decide what tools to use on site, control contamination while fully encapsulated in a “Level A” hazardous material suit with a limited amount of air and an alarm that goes off after every 12 seconds of non-movement, come back and go through multiple level decontamination. You have 45 minutes; go!
A Marine must be able to do all of these things and be as proficient at these skills as to instruct others on how to accomplish the same mission as a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear instructor.
While most Marines associate the CBRN job field with running the gas chamber for annual training, CBRN units do more than that, explained Sgt. Joshua M. Duncan, the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar CBRN school non-commissioned officer in charge and a Sacramento, Calif., native.
CBRN defense specialists go through a five-month training school where they learn hazardous material detection, containment and decontamination. This involves learning wind patterns that show where hazardous gases and vapors can range, different types of hazards, and practice for multiple types of scenarios they may come across.
Oregon National Guard, 102 Civil Support Team, conducted a joint training exercise at the Port of Portland, and in Astoria, Ore., Sept. 27-29.
The 102 Civil Support Team trained with multiple federal and local agencies in Exercise Columbia Crest, which was designed to test their ability to respond to potential Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) threats.
The exercise also supported essential interagency coordination and partnered with first responders.
Also participating in the exercise was the Job Corps’ tug M/V IUKA with full crew from Job Corps. The 103-foot tug was commanded by Captain Patrick Albers.
Some of the agencies which participated in the training exercise were; FBI, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, TSA, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Columbia River Vessel Boarding Security Team (VBST), a MH-60 Jayhawk Helicopter Crew from Air Station Astoria US Coast Guard, Port of Portland Fire & Police, Portland Metropolitan Explosive Disposal Unit (MEDU), Port of Portland Marine Security, Oregon State Radiation Protection Services, HAZMAT 07, HAZMAT 11, Department of Energy RAP 8, Oregon National Guard’s 102 Civil Support Team (CST).
The mission of the Oregon National Guard’s 102 Civil Support Team is to provide support to community and state authorities in the event of a natural or manmade chemical, biological, radiological, or weapons of mass-destruction incident.
LION Connects proudly announces our new social media partnership with DuPont, one of LION’s largest supplier partners. The new collaboration will work to share news and technical data about the gear you trust to keep you safe in the most extreme environments.
Our first video in an ongoing series about turnout gear helps to clarify the difference between the heavy structural firefighting gear and the lighter USAR and wildlands gear and the purpose each garment serves:
The FDNY Center of Terrorism and Disaster Preparedness is one of the most technologically advanced organizations of its kind in the world, entrusted to keep New York City safe from any and every threat imaginable. Part of their ongoing training and planning involves the LION MT94 multi-threat CRBN garment. The Center put together an overview video to highlight its many advanced capabilities and precautions, and you can see the MT94 being discussed in the PPE section around the 4 minute mark:
The newly reopened September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of $2.8 billion started taking applications Monday.
The fund is intended to help people who became ill after working at ground zero and others whose sicknesses can be tied to the site. Residents, workers and others can apply, including those whose claims to the first fund were denied.
“Everybody who is eligible should apply for this,” said John Feal, a leading advocate for injured first responders.
The deadline for applying for help is Oct. 3, 2013, or two years from the time a person learns that a physical injury or sickness resulted from exposure to ground zero. The program will run for six years.
I zipped up the flack jacket, put on an Army helmet and snapped a pair of goggles over my eyes.
Suddenly I was crouching with a squad of infantrymen on a dusty street in a village somewhere in Afghanistan.
Or my avatar was. But I bear witness — it felt like I was there.
If I turned my head, the 3-D scene and point of view changed. I could walk in any direction, kneel or stand up and the scene would change as I moved. I could fire my weapon — a realistic M4 rifle replica loaded with electronics — and see the bullets hit their target.
Glancing up at the building a hundred yards away that our intelligence said contained seven bad guys, I spotted a sniper on the roof.
Just a couple weeks ago I was teaching a handgun course and there came a point on the range where I realized, looking down the line of students, that every one of them was wearing / carrying their handgun differently. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, but the follow on was me examining each platform trying to ascertain what specific purpose it had been built for. Obviously it had to carry the handgun securely but one guy had two magazine pouches also mounted; another had a flashlight and a knife; another yet had a grenade pouch on his… things that make you go “hmmm…” So, with those thoughts in mind, I felt it would be good to discuss a few options and offer up a few suggestions for what they’re worth.
Understand up front that I’m only talking about “tactical” platforms. Of course, they were deemed “tactical” because, back in the day, they were most often used by SWAT folks. Since then we’ve (shooters) come to realize that all of the characteristics that make them great for use by SWAT guys and soldiers also makes them great for use by we “commoners”. (I’m not a SWAT guy anymore) What makes them so great?
Dogs in the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office will be getting four new bulletproof vests, thanks to a grant from the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation, founded by the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback.
The dogs receiving the vests are trained to detect explosives, as well as to help officers on their regular patrols.
“The grant funds will provide our dogs with vests that protect them from attacks with firearms and knifes while engaged in their duties,” said Sheriff Darren Popkin.
The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation is distributing grants like this one to police and fire departments in Pittsburgh and the cities and surrounding communities of each Steelers regular season away game. The Steelers are playing the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.
It’s a time for remembrance. Nearly 3,000 people were murdered. Each loss creates an unfillable void for family, friends, our fire service and first responder community, and the nation.
It’s a time for reflection. Right after 9/11, as a country, we stood as one. That sense of oneness has looked and felt increasingly fragile over the past two years of economic and political turmoil in our country.
It’s a time for renewed solidarity: to recommit ourselves to a belief in that oneness that we felt so strongly 10 years ago. The challenges we face in each of our communities and in the nation can only be solved through believing in oneness not divisiveness. Divisiveness is what our enemies hope for.
We must also recommit ourselves to the defense of our country – and to its core values. On 9/11, we were attacked by radical Islamist forces not for a specific policy, but for who we are. Remember: in 1993, under a different president from a different party, there was another deadly terror attack on the Twin Towers. It’s America – and what we stand for – that’s the target.
I thank each of our first responders for putting your lives on the line daily to keep our families and communities safe. I hope our nation never experiences anything like 9/11 again, but if we do, know that we as a company are doing everything we can to keep you safe and ready to respond to whatever challenge you face.
Ralph and Barbara Geidel have spent close to $100,000 on his medical treatment since 2003, when the former fireman and 9/11 first responder was first diagnosed with tongue and neck cancer.
“We’ve already used up all of our savings,” said his wife, Barbara. “We’re now living paycheck to paycheck.”
The Geidels were hoping to finally get some health insurance help with their mounting medical bills, when President Obama earlier this year signed into law the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.
By Lance Cpl. Erica Disalvo
LION Connects
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