The North Dakota National Guard conducted a “blizzard response exercise” today at the Guard’s Fraine Barracks headquarters in Bismarck.
The exercise included the Highway Patrol and the Department of Emergency Services.
"We try to do a blizzard exercise every year, just to make sure we're sharpening our skills," said Guard director of training and exercises Lt. Colonel Anne Willoughby. "Every October, the Army moves some of our soldiers around, so we ant to make sure that, even though we have some new soldiers, we're proficient with our response."
Willoughby said the soldiers will know what they are supposed to do, and communicate with the necessary people, such as the Dept. of Emergency Services and the other community partners.
About 50 soldiers and airmen from the Guard’s Domestic Operations Section worked from the Joint Operations Center at Fraine Barracks.
Willoughby said the Guard gets involved after a county emergency manager reaches out, and says it needs the help. She said what also helps is that the Guard soldiers, by and large, are citizen soldiers, and have jobs in their communities.
"They bring their knowledge and skills from their civilian jobs to their military jobs, and vice versa," Willoughby said. "By having trained people in our communities, we have people who understand the community. It brings the knowledge that's needed. It's different than having the big Army come in. They don't know the area, they don't know the people, they don't know the situations like a citizen soldier does."