Homeland Defense enhances CBRN response training at Fort Leonard Wood
“Fort Leonard Wood is the heart of the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Response Enterprise mission’s individual training in support of its technical support forces,” said Catherine Krakuszeski, Homeland Defense Civil Support Office director, Maneuver Support Center of Excellence. “By developing and commissioning these premier, state-of-the-art training venues, we are not just leading, we are setting the standard for CBRN Response Enterprise training.”
Fort Leonard Wood’s renovated IRTD area is “where competence is forged and confidence is built,” said Brig. Gen. Alexander Lovasz, MScoE and Fort Leonard Wood commanding general.
Three buildings at the 1st Lt. Joseph Terry Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Response Training Facility have been transformed into high-fidelity training environments, immersing hazardous materials first responders in realistic, complex CBRN and weapons of mass destruction incident scenarios.
Those renovations, Krakuszeski added, are “critical to our national security.”
“These state-of-the-art venues include a three-story tactical target building, a two-story training complex, and a single-story training hub that are critical to our nation's readiness,” Krakuszeski said. “They provide the realistic, advanced training environments needed to prepare the nation's CBRN Response Enterprise forces for their mission.”
During his remarks as keynote speaker at the ribbon cutting ceremony, Lovasz said he remembered when the 1st Lt. Joseph Terry CBRN Response Training Facility was built.
“This training facility opened its door just over 19 years ago and I happened to be here when it did,” Lovasz said. “For over two decades, it has served as a critical training ground for our nation’s homeland defense forces. But the threats our nation faces are not static; they evolve and so must our training.”
He said the new scenarios incident response teams will face inside the walls are “more complex, more realistic and more demanding than ever before.”
According to Krakuszeski, the buildings will be used by Soldiers and Airmen from the active, Reserve, and National Guard components “to ensure they are certified and ready to meet their demanding response timelines.”
Michael Schmitz, Incident Response instructor, Civil Support Skills Course, Homeland Defense Civil Support Office, said the target-sites support IRTD responders at operations and technician-level training, “including the Civil Support Skills Course, CBRN Response Enterprise Basic and Advanced, Mass Casualty Decontamination and other hazardous material and CBRN technical training.”
“These facilities can be used at different levels of complexity, varying from team skills all the way up to full-mission scenarios, dependent on training needs and student capabilities,” Schmitz added.
When developing the upgraded scenarios, Schmitz said his crew prioritized realistic, high-consequence CBRN situations that replicate the complex, rapidly evolving challenges responders encounter in real-world incidents.
“We look at real-world CBRN response missions, lessons learned and the tasks our teams are expected to perform,” Schmitz said. “From that, we developed three primary environments; chemical, radiological and biological target-sites, which force responders to assess conditions, recognize hazards and work with incomplete information and determine the best response.”
He said CBRN first responders must build a clear operational picture as they move through the incident training building — conducting reconnaissance, employing detection instruments, characterizing the site, collecting and analyzing samples and making critical decisions under pressure.
“They use everything from physical clues, equipment, casualties, documents, meter responses and a wide variety of injects,” Schmitz said. “Which all support realistic chain of events.”
He said the live demonstration performed by the Missouri National Guard's 7th Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Teamafter the ribbon cutting was a great example of how the buildings enhance training.
“When the scenario stops being a training prop and becomes a real problem they genuinely need to solve, you can see that transition happen in real-time. They start connecting clues, questioning previous assumptions and adapt their plans accordingly,” Schmitz said. “Remembering a checklist is great, but learning how to think critically when that checklist isn't giving you an obvious answer is much more valuable.”
Krakuszeski agreed.
“What excites me most is seeing the tangible outcome of this incredible collaborative effort. Observing our service members train in these realistic venues confirms that we are providing them with the best possible preparation to protect American communities,” Krakuszeski said.
“When you see them successfully navigate a scenario designed to mimic a real-world complex catastrophe, you know that this investment is directly contributing to our nation's resilience and security.”
More photos from the ribbon cutting and CST training mission may be viewed in this [Fort Leonard Wood photo album](https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjD5z1x).
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