The “big show” was in town this last week as the Wyoming National Guard 84th Civil Support Team conducted training  with emergency responders and law enforcement in Lincoln County. The training took place a multiple locations during the week of February 19-22.

“The team conducted training with Star Valley High school students, Star Valley Medical Center, South Lincoln Medical Center, Thayne and Alpine fire/EMS, Kemmerer Fire/EMS, Kemmerer police, Lincoln County Sheriff office and Star Valley Search and Rescue,” said Justin Day Lincoln County Public Health Response Coordinator. “The 84th CST plays a unique role in Wyoming as the 22 person team made up of Airmen and Soldiers and is responsible for supporting civil authorities with any Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRNE) incident throughout Wyoming.”

This is not the first time the 84th has been in Lincoln County. And, it is not the last time the group will make a visit to the area this year.

“The team trains two times a year in Lincoln County and trains with agencies in Lincoln County on everything from helping with chemical, biological, and radiological (CBRNE) incident sites to conducting data analysis on flooding,” Day said.

The training exercise are multifaceted and complex, Day explained.

“During the week  the 84th CST spent one day working with Star Valley High School students conducting experiments and training on Chemical, Biological, Radiological (CBRNE) equipment and  with robots. The focus of the training was to show students the opportunities that exist in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering  and Math) fields,” Day said.

In South Lincoln County the emergency responder training involved a mass casualty scenario.

“The training allowed the hospital and organizations to practice conducting decontamination of individuals who were involved in a HAZMAT accident,” said Day. “The training allowed the South Lincoln Medical Center to train on Emergency Response Training during a Mass Casualty Incident.  The training event allowed hospital staff the opportunity to determine and use appropriate personal protective equipment and conduct triage followed by decontamination of ambulatory and non-ambulatory patients.”

From South Lincoln County, the 84th made their way to Star Valley to work with the Search and Rescue.

“The team conducted cold weather and snowmobile training with the Star Valley Search and Rescue,” Day said. “During the training the team learned how to operate a snowmobile and how to ride in deep powder. The team learned about avalanches and practiced cold winter medical recovery procedures.”

The last training session the 84th CST participated in included Star Valley Medical Center and area first responders.

“In this made up scenario, First Responders were called to a building in Etna where there were individuals who were involved in making methamphetamine,” said Day. “The individuals caused an explosion resulting in them becoming contaminated.  The explosion resulted in burns to their bodies and the individuals had nose and throat irritation, headaches, confusion and difficulty breathing.   The Alpine and Thayne Fire Departments along with Alpine and Thayne EMS safely removed the individuals from the contaminated house, conducted gross decontamination and provided first aid.”

“The individuals where then transported to Star Valley Medical Center where a decontamination corridor had been established outside the Emergency Room,” Day continued. “The decontamination corridor allowed for the containment of the HAZMAT and patient to the corridor and keeps the secondary contamination to a minimum until the patient is properly decontaminated.  Inside the decontamination corridor the staff conducted Secondary Decontamination prior to the patient being seen in the ER.”

According to Day, the 84th Civil Support Team enjoys spending time in this part of the state.

“Captain Adam Oswalt, Survey Section Leader, stated that he and his team love to come to Star Valley to train for a few reasons; the volunteers who his team work with are amazing and make his team feel so welcome and they enjoy the terrain in Lincoln County,” Day said. “Captain Oswalt, who is originally from Kentucky and stationed in Cheyenne, could not believe the amount of snow this year and said there was no reason to leave Wyoming for Cold Weather/Snow training.”

According to Day, the 84th Civic Support Team is planning to come back in September for “more training and is excited to spend time in Star Valley when it is a little warmer.”