Rapid Assessment and Initial Detection:

Where the Only Disaster is Not Knowing How to Respond

Major Patricia A. Pettis

 

Introduction

In recent years there has been a new twist to terrorism: tinkering with Weapons of Mass Destruction here in America. Be it chemical, biological or cyberterrorism, these repeated fatal attempts have caused our National leadership to take a more serious approach to enforcing Domestic Preparedness in our own cities and states across America.

One effort has been the creation of Civil Support Teams organized and funded by the Department of Defense and given to state National Guard units, where more than 200 years ago, civilian soldiers first poised their weapons in defense of their homeland.

The purpose of this presentation is to give the audience an overview of the National Guard’s response effort to Weapons of Mass Destruction and Terrorism as it relates to the Domestic Preparedness Program. The National Guard unit from Georgia, the 4^th Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team (WMD-CST), will be described according to its mission and composition with a special emphasis on the Medical Team’s role and function.

1. Learning Objectives

Following completion of this presentation, attendees will be able to:

1. Describe the mission statement of the Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team (WMD-CST) as it relates to the Domestic Preparedness Program
2. Identify the organizational structure of the WMD-CST and the primary roles and functions of each team.
3. Understand the response capabilities of the WMD-CST in the event of a terrorist attack involving Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD).
4. List the states that currently have a WMD-CST assigned, and more specifically, the current area of responsibility for the 4^th WMD-CST.
5. Appreciate the roles and responsibilities of the Medical Team in their efforts to Assess, Advise and Facilitate a WMD event involving Terrorism.

 

2. Discussion

1. Evolution of the Domestic Prepared Program and the Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Teams (WMD-CST)

2. Mission of the 4^th WMD-CST

1. Assess
2. Advise
3. Facilitate

3. Location of Teams/Areas of Responsibility

1. FEMA Regions
2. Nunn-Lugar-Dominici cities

4. Mission Objectives of the 4^th WMD-CST

1. Deploy
2. Conduct Operations
3. Conduct Assessments
4. Redeploy

5. Organizational Structure and Team Responsibilities

1. Command Team
2. Operations Team
3. Survey Team
4. Medical Team
5. Communications Team
6. Administrative/Logistics Team

6. Mission Capabilities of 4^th WMD-CST

1. Personnel
2. Equipment
3. "Reachback Architecture"
4. Training Requirements
5. Duty Status/Availability
6. Activation/Deployment Criteria

3. Summary

Let us not let Weapons of Mass Destruction and Terrorism catch us unprepared, not knowing how to respond. It is essential that all local, state and federal agencies, whether civilian or military, whether funded or volunteer, come together with all the knowledge and expertise they offer to provide the best homeland defense that our citizens deserve.