Index to Reconn/Decon Webpages

Role of the CST

Weapons of Mass Destruction

Tracking an Aerosol Release

Reconn/Decon Module

Module Specs

Chemical Warfare

Chemical Terrorism

Chemical Response Kit

Biological Warfare

Biological Terrorism

Bio-Sampling Kit

Anthrax

Plague

Tularemia

DNA Studies

Decon Shower

Decon Solution & Foam

Role of the Civil Support Team in a Chemical or Bioterrorism Attack

The Army National Guard (ARNG) is designated to play a supporting role in the handling of a chemical or biological terrorism attack. The combination of Blackhawk helicopters located in every state, specially trained Civil Support Teams (CST) with protective clothing and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) and PLI's Reconn/Decon Module provides unique capabilities for the ARNG to rapidly respond to an event. A two-man reconnaissance team can quickly survey the environment around a "hotspot" or contaminated zone (and the hotspot itself). By sampling the soil, water, air, dead animals, and selected hosts, the environmental survey can provide useful and timely information as to the nature and extent of the chemical attack or the epidemic. Defining the perimeter and defining the buffer zone are important tasks in managing a major event.

In a major domestic terrorist event there will be a consortium of agencies involved in the response: FEMA, FBI, the Center for Disease Control, the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and others. The CST and the ARNG will be invited (or requested) to participate if they can provide services deemed useful and necessary. Other agencies will have teams in protective clothing that drive on roads to the "hotspot" defined by the location of victims. In contrast, the ARNG and its CST can insert a reconnaissance team by helicopter at locations which cannot be readily reached by other agencies. The reconn team can then travel cross-country in a rugged utility vehicle to a series of locations, collecting and monitoring samples and logging their locations with a GPS. The helicopter overhead using an infrared scanner can locate the carcasses of large animals and direct the movements of the reconn team on the ground. The helicopter can move the reconn team and its 6-wheeler to another location, and then another. Thus, many samples over a large area can be monitored or collected in a relatively short period of time.

Useful Links to Other Sites

Supporting Role of the Army National Guard

The National Guard has units known as Civil Support Teams tasked with being able to respond quickly to a bioterrorist or chemical terrorist attack. Response roles for these teams include the following:

• Augment the State Army Reserve Center with WMD detection, reconnaissance, assessment, and monitoring
• Provide aerial reconnaissance and sampling
• Provide and employ specialized equipment
• Provide air transportation support

Defining the perimeter and buffer zone with the Reconn/Decon Module are consistent with the designated roles for the ARNG.

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