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GAS! GAS! GAS! Sailors hone decontamination skills in NBC exercise

USMC News

Story Identification Number: 200332601641
Story by Cpl. Trevor M. Carlee

CAMP KINSER, Okinawa, Japan(March 26, 2003) -- Sailors of Kinser Group Aid Station, Headquarters and Service Battalion, 3rd Force Service Support Group, went through their annual Nuclear Biological Chemical field casualty exercise recently.

After carrying their gas masks around all week, these Sailors simulated a makeshift field environment.

The training was conducted in order to expand the knowledge of the Sailors in the area of decontamination, according to Petty Officer 1st Class Jose Bautista, Supervisor, Administration Services, KGAS, Headquarters and Service Battalion, 3rd FSSG.

With a total of 31 Sailors participating in the exercise, some played the part of the injured while others were the corpsman.

"It's good to practice our skills out here so we're ready for anything," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Chris Beaumont, corpsman, KGAS, Headquarters and Service Battalion. "It's also good to play the injured role, because it gives us an idea of what the Marines go through when we're treating them."

The Whitinsville, Mass., native laid out in the sun in his Mission Oriented Protective Posture gear while waiting for corpsmen to come pick him up and take him to the decontamination area.

In the beginning of the training exercise, Sailors donned their MOPP gear and lined up for their brief. One group was to play the injured role while the other group's priority was to find a fallen servicemember, determine the severity of their injury and bring them back to the decontamination area, according to Bautista, a Cavite City, Philippines, native.

"It's hot out here with all this gear on but it's good training," said Petty Officer 3rd Class Cayla Green, corpsman, KGAS, Headquarters and Service Battalion. "We could end up doing this every day if we ever go to war, so we need to know what it's like and what to do."

When the injured were brought to the decontamination area, they were first separated into groups of importance. The ones who required the most immediate attention were run through first, possibly even treated on the spot.

First, the corpsmen decontaminate the MOPP gear and gas mask by scrubbing it with a mixture of water and 5 percent bleach. Then corpsmen cut off the gear and scrub the body. Once the body has been cleaned, the victim is moved to the next area where corpsmen use a Chemical Agent Monitor, which detects blister and nerve agents.

Then, the injured Sailor is taken to a non-contaminated area where they are assisted in taking off their gas mask and leaving the area.

Green, a Dallas, Texas, native, was the only one to go completely through the process during the entire exercise.

"The most important thing in this kind of event is not to spread the contamination," said Cpl. Jose Lopez, NBC specialist, G-3 NBC, 3rd FSSG, and Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, native.

Marines from Headquarters and Service Battalion and Training Section NBC were on hand to help in the decontamination process.

"This is a good exercise for everyone," Bautista said. "Sailors broaden their knowledge on how to decontaminate patients, and the Marines get to learn how we treat patients. I think everyone got something out of this exercise."