WHITE SANDS MISSILE RANGE, N.M., April 1, 2010 - White Sands Missile Range has been recognized as one of the safest installations in the Army and will receive the Secretary of the Army and Chief of Staff, Army Exceptional Organization Safety Award for the 2009 fiscal year.
WSMR will receive the award at the division/organization level for its work to support the overall safety mission of the Army. "It's usually once in a lifetime that you'll have this in an organization," said Randy Grunow, WSMR's installation safety director.
Part of the credit for WSMR's success is its installation safety plan. Unlike other installations, WSMR had to have a safety plan that could accommodate all of WSMR's different organizations and tenants; requiring it to not only meet Army requirements, but also those of other services like the Air Force and Navy.
Further challenging WSMR's safety team was an expansion of their mission, from one supporting test operations on WSMR to one that also had to support the arrival of the 2nd Engineer Battalion. "Of the Army safety programs there are a number of functional areas, and this range covers 80 percent of those areas," Grunow said.
Contributing to WSMR safety requirements are some test facilities with strict and specific safety requirements that are unique to WSMR and the Army. As a testament to the program, WSMR had no accidents involving loss of life or resulting in large costs during the 2009 fiscal year. Additionally, safety inspections showed a 58 percent reduction in safety violations.
Over the past year, WSMR's safety program included safety days, where members from the surrounding community gave presentations on safety topics such as the dangers of drinking and driving. Members of WSMR safety and emergency services also taught WSMR employees and Soldiers about the importance of being prepared for an emergency.
To help support the increase in the number of Soldiers, the safety office also established a motorcycle safety course and training program. While the course ultimately had to be removed to make room for the battalion's motor pool, a replacement is already being planned. "Where it's going now is to have a new course built this year. With our Soldiers deploying, we need to have a place where they can train after they get back," Grunow said.
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