CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait -- Staff Sgt. Brian Koester (left), a role player and K-9 military working dog operation noncommissioned officer, is being detained by Area Support Group - Kuwait Law Enforcement Officer Ryan Cheshire (center), with the help of M...
Spc. James Owens (left) and Spc. Cesar Camilo Ramos (center), military police officers with the 127th Military Police Company of Fort Carson, Colo., simulate neutralizing an active-shooter role-player Sgt. 1st Class Alexis Holbert (right), with Headq...
Patrolman Spc. James Owens (right), with the 127th Military Police Company of Fort Carson Colo., stands guard over a victim role-player Sgt. Kindra Smith, of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Area Support Group -- Kuwait, during an Emergency Man...
Patrolman Spc. Michael Guzman, with the 127th Military Police Company out of Fort Carson, Colo., stands guard during an active shooter training event at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Jan. 31, 2017. The Active shooter simulation is part of a training exercise...
Members of the Criminal Investigation Division with Area Support Group-Kuwait Emergency Services practice hostage negotiations during an active shooter training event at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Jan. 31, 2017. The active shooter simulation is part of a ...
"The goal of this exercise is to assess the DES' ability to work as a combined team through the camp's emergency services, fire and police capabilities," said Cpt. Kyle Crocker, the operations officer and Director of Emergency Services. "It gives us an opportunity not only to practice what we train on, but also give the commander a realistic picture of what to expect from the DES."
The training was a large-scale scenario that brought a lot of emergency services together, to execute the base protection plan. Sgt. 1st Class Benjamin Coughlin, the noncommissioned officer in charge of DES, ASG-Kuwait, explained, that all of the emergency response organizations participated in the base defense plan, which included Explosive Ordnance Disposal, Emergency Medical Services, the Fire Department, Military Police, the Force Protection Cell, Troop Medical Clinic, Criminal Investigation Division, and ASG Ministries.
"Every DoD installation is supposed to conduct emergency service exercises, they have to do it routinely," Coughlin added.
The scenario had some major events that tested the members of the DES, which included an active shooter, discovery of an improvised explosive device, and a hostage negotiation.
"These situations, they can happen everywhere. They do happen in the [United States], not just on military installations, but also in the civilian sector," Coughlin added. "So having these exercises definitely makes sure that we are properly prepared."
Coughlin explained that the key aspects of the training are to test the base defense plan, as well as to test emergency response of an active shooter and EOD's ability to respond to the threat of finding an explosive device.
Sgt. 1st Class Alfred J. Leblanc, with the 127 MP Company of Fort Carson, Colo., explained that the training is of great value to the soldiers, especially junior soldiers who have to make life changing decisions every day.
"The exercise was designed to create a realistic scenario for military police response and how they handle the situation, from assessing the situation to neutralizing the threat, containing the crime scene and getting the outside agencies involved," said Leblanc. "This training gives them a scenario so they can work through the decisions they should, or should not make."
When the training scenario was over, everyone involved was able to take a deep breath and assess the situation. Subsequently, the chaos was brought under control, and service members have a better understanding of what an active shooter scenario might look like.
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