CAMP DENALI, Alaska—Eight Alaska Army National Guardsmen participated in a joint agency communications exercise in Sitka Feb. 1-2 to improve the city’s ability to respond during an actual emergency.
Six members from C Company (Long Range Surveillance), 1-297th Reconnaissance and Surveillance and two members from the 103rd Civil Support Team joined members from the Sitka Fire Department, U.S. Coast Guard, Sitka Mountain Rescue, Sitka Police Department, City of Sitka Public Works, Alaska Division of Homeland Security & Emergency Management and the U.S. Forest Service to prepare for a simulated tsunami that destroys communication on Sitka’s Japonski Island.
“Our main objective in Sitka was to evaluate what plan they have in place for a significant event and to see how we can fit in to assist and augment their incident command,” said 1st Lt. Isaac Hernandez, communications platoon leader, C Co. (Long Range Surveillance), 1-297th Reconnaissance and Surveillance. “We got a lot out of this training, and it was a great opportunity to work with so many agencies.”
Sitka, like many Alaska communities, is not directly accessible by road, so getting communication in and out of the city is extremely important when a natural disaster strikes there. As a state asset, the incident command in Sitka needs to know what assets are available and more importantly, how to use those assets in an emergency.
“The exercise was an opportunity to meet all the organizations involved, build relationships, lay out equipment and give us an idea of what people have available,” said Staff Sgt. Colin Oppegard, communications section chief, C Co. (Long Range Surveillance), 1-297th Reconnaissance and Surveillance. “We tested the communications plans in Sitka proper. We sent teams up on Harbor Mountain and another out to Kruzof Island via Jay Hawk to see if they could relay communications. It taught us a lot about what would work and what we can do better to assist the community.”
Providing forces and capabilities to civilian authorities across Alaska is the objective of the Alaska National Guard when it is called in to support. Scenarios like these, according to Hernandez, go a long way to ensure his unit can reestablish communications in an emergency.
“We’re in a position now that if they were to call us today or tomorrow, we’d know the plan and could jump in and help,” Hernandez said. “We’re much better off and prepared because of this training. Bottom line is: we learned a lot, but more importantly, we got to help them out and let them know we’re always here.”
