Fort Hood, TX – 1st Cavalry Division adapted food service operations on Mar. 15to feed Troopers during the Fort Hood Energy Resilient Readiness Exercise which left the installation powerless throughout the duty day.
The purpose of the exercise was to test installation emergency and standby energy generation systems, critical infrastructure and equipment to inform senior leaders of what infrastructure is required to support critical missions on the installation.
“It provides me with satisfaction; to be able to feed the customers, to give them hope that they have somewhere to eat if something like this was to happen,” said Spc. Jovan Harris, culinary specialist, 1st Cavalry Division Sustainment Brigade.
Culinary specialists with 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, and 1st CAV Sustainment Brigade set up field feeding equipment with the capability to feed up to 600 Troopers, ensuring Troopers, who are meal card holders, still had the opportunity to receive three meals while on-post restaurants and dining facilities remained closed.
Despite the loss of power, Troopers continued to conduct operations to maintain the division’s readiness. Private 1st Class Jazer DeGuzman, infantryman, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, said he was preparing for upcoming training at the National Training Center and appreciative of having the commodity of stopping by and grabbing a plate of food on his way to work during the power outage.
Field feeding teams made up of 10-12 culinary specialists provided eligible Troopers hot meals for breakfast and dinner. During the lunch meal, Troopers were offered a cold take-out meal kit, which met the Army “Go-for-Green” nutritional value standards and included a sandwich, produce, a drink and snacks.
The 1st Cavalry Division Sustainment Brigade also provided Troopers the opportunity to eat at the Mobile Outpost; which offered three hot meals and was equipped to feed approximately 300 Troopers.
“As you can see we are ready to support the Fort Hood footprint to make sure that Troopers the meals they need throughout the day,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jobeth Yambo, food service manager, 1st Cavalry Division.
According to Yambo, these types of exercises offer opportunities to test how 1st CAV culinary teams would react if there were a real-world calamity.
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