What it takes to develop an effective military exercise - SDDC

County and local law enforcement, fire departments, and emergency management offices around MOTSUand MOTCO are also invited to participate in the exercises with each installation.Ragan said that offering a training environment to county and local responders is a win-win situation.Even though it cost the county a bit more from their budget for their folks to train with the military, theycan capitalize on discovering their own strengths and weaknesses, as well as, advance their relationshipwith the installation.G-2 relies on partners and outsourced personnel for their expertise and assistance in executing theexercise. For Coyote Shield 2011, team participants comprised of contractors, members from U.S.Transportation Command, SDDC, 596th, 597th and 599th Transportation Brigades, 375th Security Forcesfrom Scott Air Force Base and local Army Reserves to bring to life a training production that ischallenging and meaningful for the 834th and Contra Costa County emergency responders. In total, 44people were on the Coyote Shield exercise team testing the skills of about 140 unit personnel and dozensof county responders.“Our objective for a successful exercise is to push the limits of the organization with our scenarios,”Ragan said. “We want to get them out of their comfort zone from their daily operations routine and wewant them to self-discover what areas they excel in and where they need to improve upon.”During development of the exercise scenarios, the team leaves no details left to chance.Cars and trucks from a local junkyard are rented and used for vehicle accidents and to carry improvisedexplosive devices as the team attempts to breach installation security. Some team members are assignedto role-play victims of vehicle accidents and chemical spills, complete with moulage [mock injuries] foradded realism of injuries.One person from the battalion is chosen to role-play a disgruntled employee, discreetly showing signs ofdiscontent throughout the week and culminating into an active shooter on the last day for police torespond too. Even the details of adding paraphernalia to a mock crack house gives police responders anenvironment of a real drug busts to deal with.Pyrotechnics are added into scenarios involving fire and explosions for realism and the team has theirown “news reporter” and film crew, dual-tasked to test leadership’s communication skills with mediaevents and document exercise highlights providing feedback to installation and county personnel.Preparation and attention to details are key ingredients for an effective and meaningful exercise. Thisallows the unit to gain valuable insight into their current capabilities and areas for improvement.--END--