Defense News: Indiana Guardsmen sharpen readiness through IRT mission

Source: United States Army

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana Army National Guardsmen with the 113th Engineer Battalion are the latest service members within the Department of War to reap the benefits of the Innovative Readiness Training program.

Soldiers in the Gary-based unit are partnering with the City of Terre Haute to demolish a roughly 60,000-square-foot building on the city’s near north side — a real-world training opportunity for Soldiers who specialize in horizontal construction and operating heavy equipment such as excavators.

Through the Innovative Readiness Training program, or IRT, government entities and nonprofits across the country can coordinate directly with military units to complete real-world projects, such as providing medical services or constructing affordable housing. Since its inception in 1993, the program has supported hundreds of projects across the United States.

The Terre Haute mission gives Hoosier Soldiers two opportunities to conduct specialized training in an urban, civilian environment. In addition to the 113th Engineer Battalion’s work to demolish the former Boys & Girls Club to make way for more housing, the state’s 19th Chemical Enhanced Response Force Package, or CERFP, Battalion will use the structure for training in June. With expertise in advanced rescue and recovery missions, they will work alongside regional partners to recover hundreds of Flat Stanleys — paper stand-ins for victims — during a simulated building collapse.

Training in an active urban environment also gives Soldiers exposure to variables and conditions that are difficult to simulate in standard training exercises, helping sharpen their readiness for real-world missions at home and abroad. Though the opportunities provided through the IRT program are vast, demolition is a unique opportunity not just for the Indiana National Guard but for the entire U.S. military.

“It is the epitome of war fighter readiness,” said Indiana National Guard Capt. Brandyn Sims, project officer with the 19th CERFP. “Our guys are going to arrive at a building that they have never heard of and never seen before… And be told that there are victims trapped inside and they have to get them out during a 24 hour, non-stop operation.”

Sims helped organize the training opportunity through IRT, which requires a robust review process among federal, state and local governments to ensure that Soldiers involved gain strong experience and training value from the project and that all participating communities and organizations meet strict program eligibility and oversight requirements.

“This provides a great opportunity for my engineers to get training on the equipment in a way that we don’t typically get to use it,” said Indiana Army National Guard Lt. Col. Derek Sutton, commander of the 113th Engineer Battalion. “Demolition is not one of our normal missions, but it is one of our objectives so this helps us stay ready.”

For the 113th Engineer Battalion, demolition involved more than daily operations. Soldiers of all ranks gained experience in site preparation, traffic and pedestrian control, infrastructure evaluations and more. While many of the National Guardsmen bring years of experience from their civilian and military careers, some Soldiers are working with new concepts and equipment.

“I have particularly enjoyed getting to train my teammates out here,” said Sgt. Alexander Sovel, a Soldier in the 113th Engineer Battalion and one of the primary excavator operators on-site. “I love standing next to them and helping them learn and experience the same experience that I have. It has just been a great experience overall to help make this project move faster too.”

Indiana Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Hector Tinoco contributed to this story.