Members of the NATO Response Force that include more than 400 participants from 13 countries participate in chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear decontamination training exercises at CFB Suffield Wednesday. Suffield has held Live Agent training sessions annually since 2004.--NEWS PHOTO BRENDAN MILLER
bmiller@medicinehatnews.com
NATO forces representing 13 nations are participating in important decontamination exercises that will prepare allied troops to safely deal with and identify chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials they may encounter in the theatre of war or natural disasters.
Under the flags of several NATO nations, including the U.S., U.K., Germany, Scandinavian countries and Canada, more than 400 participants have gathered at CFB Suffield to take part in a three-week military exercise dubbed ‘Precise Response 2024.’
“The skills that soldiers are learning here, they’re going to apply to any theatre of conflict, but they can also apply to the civilian side for things such as accidental releases of toxic industrial chemicals,” says LCol. Trevor Waaga. “So it’s important to exercise these skills before being faced with those types of events to ensure our soldiers are ready and they trust their equipment and they trust their protection.”
Members of the media were invited to CFB Suffield on Wednesday to witness soldiers and medics training in a live-agent environment while working in mutli-nation teams in an effort to reduce casualties and prevent the spread of toxic materials when dealing with chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear hazards.
Participants of this military exercise are all members of the NATO CBRN Defence Battalion, which forms part of NATO’s Response Force and conducts specific defence activities to support NATO operations.
This training specifically is designed to reinforce operational procedures and align them within NATO countries to ensure everyone is working on common ground.
“With our soldiers serving overseas in places like Latvia, they’re constantly going to be working with other NATO nations,” says Waaga. “This is just one of those steps in order to build those relationships, confirm their tactics, tips and procedures, and be able to work with one another in those operations.”
During the military exercises small teams of soldiers would advance downrange into an unknown environment that simulates a reconnaissance mission, as well as collecting samples of materials that will be transported to labs for further analysis.
However, before those soldiers can return from their mission, they must undergo a thorough decontamination process to ensure they don’t contaminate or spread harmful toxins or chemicals. Because those soldiers are working with and sampling materials that have not been tested and could pose a significant threat, the process must ensure to remove all contamination to prevent the spread of harmful agents to other units.
“So, that’s critical,” explains Waaga. “This is a severe exercise, these soldiers are trained to deal with various chemical agents, biological agents and radiological agents.”
Waaga explains the scenarios and materials soldiers are facing during the military exercises can be complex and they require expertise of subject matter and often require materials to be sent to labs to understand what soldiers may be dealing with.
The U.S Armed Forces provided CFB Suffield with a ‘First Area Medical Laboratory” – a mobile lab that can identify materials from the battlefield, cutting down the time it would take to transfer materials to a facility.
During this training exercise technicians working in the First Area Medical Laboratory were able to share tactics, tips and procedures in place with the Central Laboratory at CFB Suffield.
“They learned what could work better and started incorporating that to what they utilize back home (In Canada), and this year they came out and confirmed everything that they changed in their own doctrine,” explains Waaga, who says this exercise is an example of how NATO forces are working together in unison to strengthen their transatlantic bond and increase security for allies in Europe and North America.
Due to the heat wave some training exercises had to be rescheduled to cooler times in the early morning. Some soldiers were required to spend several hours in decontamination suits. Training was suspended once an individual’s body temperature reached 40C to prevent symptoms of heat stroke.
Since 2004, CFB Suffield has held similar Live Agent Training exercises for NATO forces every year except for a two-year break during the pandemic.
Canada provides this three-week training of NATO soldiers as a follow-on contribution to the Prague Summit of November 2002 to support NATO operations. The training area CFB Suffield provides is approximately 2,800 square kilometres and is known as the largest training area of its kind in the Commonwealth.
