By Janecze Wright
III Armored Corps Public Affairs

FORT HOOD, Texas – Fort Hood began its annual two-day full-scale exercise at 8 a.m. at Phantom Warrior Stadium. The exercise is designed to practice the installation’s ability to effectively respond to a crisis situation.

This year’s full scale exercise brings together Soldiers, first responders and community partners to test their readiness during a series of realistic scenarios designed to mirror real-world conditions.

“It’s all about preparedness, and the best way to do that is evaluate our response personnel, EMS (emergency medical services), police and fire,” Fred Corbin, emergency manager, Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security, explained. “In this year’s scenario, we had an incident at the stadium here on the installation, which caused several casualties, and we get Soldiers from various units to play the role players with mock injuries. The Soldiers will be treated by the EMS, and then they’ll be dispatched to our various hospitals.”

Soldiers, Fort Hood Directorate of Emergency Services, Fort Hood Fire Department and Red Cross personnel worked diligently during the simulated mass-casualty incident to render aid to patients with varying injuries sprawled across the parking lot, triaging some on plastic tarps based on the severity of their wounds and placing others on backboards and into ambulances to be transported to local hospitals.

EMS staff extracted dummies from a two-car pile-up and rendered first aid as fire service personnel worked to address smoke coming from the wreckage using a fire hose and dousing the area with a heavy stream of water.

Full-scale exercises like this go beyond routine training. They provide a critical opportunity to integrate capabilities, test contingency plans and reinforce the importance of teamwork and vigilance Col. Mark McClellan, U.S. Army Garrison-Fort Hood commander, conveyed.

“This training exercise ensures our installation is ready to respond immediately and appropriately in any situation,” McClellan said. “They strengthen coordination across agencies, test our emergency systems and ultimately safeguard the Soldiers, families and civilians who live and work here.

“It is about readiness at every level, allowing us to validate our plans, identify gaps and build the muscle memory needed to respond quickly and effectively when it matters most,” he continued. “Our priority is the safety and security of our entire installation. Exercises like this bring together our partners to rehearse real-world scenarios and ensure we are prepared to protect lives and sustain mission operations.”