CAMP ATTERBURY, Indiana -- The U.S. Army Reserve's Consequence Management Unit (CMU) from the 20th CBRNE Command (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives) participated in Exercise Vibrant Response here April 23 - May 8.
Col. Barrett K. Parker, the CMU commander, said his unit responded to a simulated nuclear attack during the exercise.
The CMU trained with the Air Force Radiation Assessment Team and an Air Force Technical Epidemiological Team as well as the CBRN Military Advisory Team from the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Other Army Reserve units involved in the exercise included the 302nd Maneuver Enhancement Brigade and 76th Operational Readiness Command. The National Guard's 38th Infantry Division led another task force participating in the exercise.
Parker said the highlight of the exercise was "planning missions to help save lives, reduce suffering and protect and restore critical infrastructure."
Established in 2001, the CMU is part of the 20th CBRNE Command, the U.S. military's only multifunctional formation that combats chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive hazards around the globe.
Based in Abingdon, Maryland, near the 20th CBRNE Command's headquarters on Aberdeen Proving Ground, the CMU has detachments in Atlanta and Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
A Chemical Corps officer from Erie, Penn., Parker said the Consequence Management Unit leverages the civilian expertise of his Army Reserve Soldiers.
"The strength of the CMU lies in the civilian-acquired expertise of our Army Reserve Soldiers that are not necessarily reflected in their military occupational specialties," said Parker, who serves as director of the Joint, Interagency, Intergovernmental, Multinational, Industry and Academia Office for the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence on Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., in his civilian capacity.
"We deploy flexible 'all hazards' teams with expertise in chemical weapons, hazardous materials, biological events, nuclear bursts and handling radioactive materials," said Parker.
Among its ranks the CMU has medical doctors, signal and information technology experts, military intelligence professionals, firefighters, registered nurses, nuclear medical science officers, environmental scientists, nuclear power experts, microbiologists, hospital planners, chemists, physicists, linguists and Chemical Corps officers.
Brig. Gen. JB Burton, the commanding general of the 20th CBRNE Command, said the Consequence Management Unit is an important part of his one-of-a-kind formation.
"This exercise demonstrated the critical role that our CMU Soldiers play in the 20th CBRNE Command," said Burton, a native of Tullahoma, Tennessee. "The CMU brings unique expertise and experience to the table that helps us to accomplish our life-saving mission."
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