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Key leaders from the 7th Civil Support Command participated in Guardian Shield 2009, a command post exercise held Sept. 2 to 4 on Ramstein and sponsored and supported by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency in Fort Belvoir, Va.
The headquarters elements of the 7th CSC showed up in force for the scenario-driven exercise where multiple agencies explained in detail their capabilities when reacting to a state of emergency. Guardian Shield 2009 is an annual exercise hosted by U.S. Army Europe to coach, mentor and improve how 7th CSC trains for and reacts to consequence management incidents.
In an effort to explain the evolution of the 7th CSC headquarters to meet today’s challenges, Maj. Gen. Paul D. Patrick, the exercise director, noted that the 7th Army Reserve Command no longer exists.
“You are no longer the 7th Army Reserve Command. You are transitioning into an operational and even an expeditionary headquarters,” General Patrick said.
The exercise participants included representatives from the U.S. State Department, U.S. European Command, USAREUR, the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, the 20th Support Command, the U.S. Army Reserve-Consequence Management Unit, Joint Task Force-Civil Support, the U.S. Northern Command, the 773rd Civil Support Team and the 7th CSC.
“The challenge for the military is taking a supporting role because the state department is the lead agency on the ground dealing with the host nation” said Joe Parente, from the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest, Romania.
“Remember, host nation. It’s their country, and they’re in charge,” said retired Lt. Gen. Robert Chelberg, a senior mentor for the exercise. “You are not in it alone; there are a lot of agencies to assist. Use them.”
As the three-day exercise came to a close, Mark Terry, the lead facilitator for the DTRA, praised the teamwork and overall success of the 7th CSC. The evolution between this year and last year was a major surge forward, he said.
“The challenge is for you to take what you have learned from this exercise and prepare for a real situation dealing with consequence management,” General Patrick said. “It’s no longer if the situation is going to happen, but when.”
Simultaneous to the exercise, briefings and operations, the 773rd Civil Support Team, commanded by Lt. Col. Timothy Pelfrey, provided an equipment capabilities demonstration using a Multi-Gas Detection System and other Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear equipment capabilities were on display.
Guardian Shield 2009 has the 7th CSC leaning forward in preparation for foreign consequence management missions.
