FORT SILL, Okla.-- Maj. Gen. Joseph Anderson, 4th Infantry Division commanding general, presented four batteries from the 214th Fires Brigade with safety awards Jan. 29, here.
A Battery, 2nd Battalion, 4th Field Artillery, was awarded the Army Accident Prevention Award of Accomplishment by participating in decisive action operations to include successfully completing 48 live rocket fire missions and 239 fire missions. Throughout, they fired 1,445 rockets without experiencing any Class A, B or C accidents during training at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif., in March.
Class A accidents are defined as accidents which the resulting total cost of property damage is $2 million or more; an Army aircraft or missile is destroyed, missing or abandoned; or an injury and/or occupational illness results in a fatality or permanent total disability.
Class B accidents are accidents where the total cost of property damage is $500,000 or more, but less than $2 million; an injury and/or occupational illness results in permanent partial disability, or when three or more personnel are hospitalized as inpatients as the result of a single occurrence.
Class C accidents result in total cost of property damage of $50,000 or more, but less than $500,000; a nonfatal injury, disability at any time or occupational illness that causes one or more days away from work or training beyond the day or shift on which it occurred.
.Anderson discussed the importance of sustaining the force through accident prevention, stating each leader is tasked to protect equipment and Soldiers. He also noted Soldiers must protect themselves and their battle buddies by understanding the importance of risk management, and understand how to implement risk management into each mission.
Over the past 12 months, with multiple deployments, major training exercises and home station training, three batteries, A and B batteries, 2-5th FA, and A Battery, 1-14th FA, earned the Army's "Safety Excellence Streamer" for superior achievement in accident prevention that Anderson also awarded.
The streamer is awarded to detachments, company-sized units and battalion-level units or higher that have demonstrated safety excellence, upheld Army safety standards and have not had any reportable Class A or B accidents for the 365 days. Also, to earn this esteemed award, all Soldiers within the batteries had to complete the Army Composite Risk Management Course and the Army Readiness Assessment Program survey. Commanders and first sergeants were required to complete the Commander's Safety Course, and as a brigade requirement all additional duty safety officers (ADSO) had to complete the ADSO safety course.
"The most impressive part in receiving this award is every Soldier within each battery awarded the streamer completed the CRM course. CRM helps Soldiers understand and use the Army Safety Program, which in turn reduces accidents within the formation," said Dan McGlone, 214th FiB safety manager.
The Safety Excellence Streamer will be displayed on the battery's guidon for one year, after which the batteries will have to requalify for it.
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