The Colorado National Guard and more than a dozen federal, tribal, State and local agencies worked together to hone their response capabilities and assist civil authorities and residents during a disaster response exercise April 3-6.
Alpine Guard 2018 involved a coordinated response to power and communication failures caused by tornado and flood scenarios that affected four counties (Morgan, Elbert, Archuleta and Denver) and the Southern Ute Tribe.
Besides the Colorado Guard, participating agencies included the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control, Wyoming National Guard, county sheriff offices, Boulder Fire-Rescue, Fort Morgan Police Department, U.S. Forest Service and a number of other local agencies and businesses.
Alpine Guard 2018 was part of a statewide effort to provide a safe and realistic training environment for comprehensive practice and development of skills in a simulated natural disaster scenario.
“Joint exercises help us to learn the advantages of being able to operate effectively with our civilian counterparts,” said Colorado Army National Guard COL Mechelle Tuttle, chief of the joint staff for Joint Task Force – Centennial (JTF-C). JTF-C integrates forces by providing command and control for military forces in support of civil support operations in Colorado and for Colorado National Guard forces responding throughout the Nation.
The Alpine Guard exercise helped multiple agencies learn each other’s capabilities, along with helping each entity understand how to respond and work together more effectively.
As part of Colorado’s State Partnership Program with Slovenia (which is in its 25th year), delegates participated in a tour and observed the collaborative efforts in response to the mock natural disasters. Slovenian delegates, Minister of Defense Andreja Katic, Chief of Defense Maj. Gen. Alan Geder, and others had the opportunity to learn more about the exercise from the Director of the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Kevin R. Klein and BG Michael J. Willis, who is general director of the Office of Emergency Management and the Assistant Adjutant General – Cyber, Space and Missile Defense, Colorado National Guard.
During the briefing with the Slovenian delegation, Klein said it’s important to deploy National Guard resources as early as necessary in real-world scenarios because they can always be recalled. The Alpine Guard 2018 exercise facilitates real-world practice by deploying troops to different areas of the state for various missions in support of civil authorities.
The training operation involved scenarios such as mass casualty response, missing persons search and rescue, and other situations that could overwhelm local first responders in the event of a large-scale crisis.
“When you have a plan, it may be good right up until the point of execution,” COL Tuttle said. “During real-world scenarios, we have to constantly be adapting our plan.”
One of the intended outcomes of the exercise was for the Colorado National Guard to capitalize on skills and training in preparation for federal missions that support Colorado communities.
“We are always in a support role to our civilian counterparts,” COL Tuttle said. “Supporting neighbors in a time of need is the most rewarding mission the military has to offer.”
BY SPC Ashley Low, Colorado NATIONAL GUARD
