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National Guard Preparation Part 2

Posted: 6:59 PM May 24, 2012
Reporter: Stephanie Midgett

National Guard Part 2

The Kentucky Air National Guard 123rd Air Lift Wing recently participated in a disaster relief drill to Fort Campbell, Kentucky, taking the media along to see how they would respond to an earthquake at the military base.

Within a matter of hours, the 123rd had been notified of activation, briefed on the situation, planes were loaded, and the wing was headed to the disaster zone.

This was only a drill, but it was treated as if it were real in order to test the wing's ability to respond to such a disaster.

Once the planes were landed safely, offload began of the equipment they had brought along.

The different squadrons (special tactics squadron, a medical squadron, and a contingency response group), spread out to do their jobs.

The ground was tested for stability, plans were made for parking other planes and vehicles that would respond to the disaster, satellite communications were set up, and had this been a real emergency search and rescue would have been performed and the medical squadron would have treated the wounded.

Lieutenant Colonel David Worley, Chief Nurse of the Medical Squadron, said, "This gives us the chance to come down now and see how everything works as we have it planned now and what doesn't work we can go back and fix."

This drill was testing not only their responses to a disaster, but also their ability to take the media along with them and using new live-webcam video to communicate real time with FEMA and Washington officials.

An operational airfield was set up at Fort Campbell, and the exercise was deemed a "success" by commanding officers.

After only a few hours, the wing packed up and headed home.

"We are Kentucky's militia. We are National Guardsmen. So this is our primary area of responsibility. We do this mission set every day overseas, as well as in the United States. And we want to be ready to do it better and faster in the United States than anywhere else," said Colonel Greg Nelson, Wing Commander of the 123rd.

Which is why the 123rd will practice, and stand at the ready to respond to a disaster at home and abroad, at a moments notice.