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Decon teams active;drill challenges Camp Fox units

USMC

Story Identification Number: 200331016543
Story by Sgt. Allan J. Grdovich

CAMP FOX, Kuwait(March 6, 2002) -- With the threat of potential war looming here, the Camp Lejeune, N.C.-based Marines and sailors of the Marine Logistics Command stayed prepared by conducting a Mock Chemical Casualty Decontamination Drill March 5.

The MLC's Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Platoon, whose expertise paved the way for 2nd Dental Battalion, 2nd Medical Bn. and the G-1 section, led the training.

The scenario portrayed a chemical attack where 14 Marines, donning gas masks and NBC suits, needed immediate decontamination assistance after a simulated SCUD missile attack, according to 2d Force Service Support Group NBC Chief, Master Sgt. Jack Robinson.

As was the case, the Marines and sailors cordoned off a five-section area and treated the injured. Sergeant Joseph Plumley, a chemical defense specialist from Beckley, W.Va., played a key role in the drill.

"When deciding where to put the site, wind direction and speed, temperature, and the type of chemical agent is all taken into consideration," he said.

The areas included a recovering area, where the drilling teams staged the injured before they received medical attention. The corpsmen then assessed wounds at an additional triage area.

From there, the teams washed the patients from head-to-toe in a decon tent. The NBC teams used neutralizing agents and then scanned the patients with Chemical Agent Monitors once outside the tent.

Plumley said the last step of the exercise required the patients to be escorted to a cold zone and await evacuation vehicles heading to the nearest aid station.

He said to set-up for a drill of this magnitude takes more than 40-minutes.

Navy doctors, who helped coordinate the exercise, came prepared. They added a realistic touch by dousing mock casualties with ketchup to simulate blood.

"This drill gives our Marines and sailors the best knowledge to know to how to survive a chemical attack," said 2nd Dental Bn.(Forward) commanding officer, U.S. Navy Capt. Stephen Pacthuta.

According to 2nd Medical Bn.'s top man, the drill does a lot for unit cohesion. "What we saw here today truly exemplifies the cohesion between the Navy Marine Corps team," said Cmdr. Ben Feril.

Training officials here said this is the just one step in the ongoing process of staying prepared for an NBC attack. MLC elements have occupied the desert sands here since late-December. The NBC threat is a constant reminder of the danger facing forces here.