MILFORD, UTAH - -- Surrouned by sand and rocks, Marines patrol slowly down the empty streets of a small town. They search for improvised explosive devices (IED) and suspicious characters. Bang! Bang! Bang! Three Marines fall as the rest of the platoon quickly finds cover.
Those Marines found cover, not behind Iraqi huts, but rather behind garbage cans and light posts in a small town of 1,451in southern Utah.
Marines of Co. F, 2nd Battalion, 23rd Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, and 6th Motor Transport Bn. filled the town in a combined security exercise Oct 12 – 16.
“The purpose of this exercise is to secure the city and give the Marines a chance to determine the enemy from a group of similar people, like they would have to in Iraq,” said Gunnery Sgt. Sonny Rodgers Co. F operations chief, “The inspector instructor (I and I) staff is dressed in civilian attire like the townsfolk, but carry concealed weapons or place IED’s to test the Marines’ search and enemy prisoner of war techniques.”
The company is split with two platoons in Las Vegas and two platoons in Salt Lake City, and throughout the weekend, the four platoons patrolled the streets with convoys provided by 6th Motor-T also from Las Vegas.
“The training being done here is excellent,” said 1st Lt. Bryan Diede, commander of Co. F. “The reservists are getting to train with an active duty unit, and the company is able to drill together. Neither of those happens often.”
The Marines set up a command center where they performed their duties, such as inspecting vehicles and interacting with pedestrians, much like they would in Iraq.
As the units went through the town, many of the locals participated in several exercises, including a scenario that involved a bombing of a large crowd complete with a medical helicopter evacuation called to the small, mountain town.
The I and I staff, acting as terrorists, placed carbon dioxide powered IED’s around the town, and the drilling reservists searched the streets for them. Some were found and others were not, resulting in the momentary fake death of those platoon members nearest the explosion.
“Right when it (an IED) went off I knew I was dead,” said Lance Cpl. Blake LeBaron, a drilling reservist with 3rd Platoon, Co. F. “They buried the IED under a pile of leaves, and Sgt. Jose Espinosavana, a mock terrorist, hid in a garbage can with the trigger. The force blew little sticks and leaves all over me; I thought I’d have to change my cammies for a second.”
Local emergency personnel worked hand in hand with the Marines throughout the weekend.
“Big things like this don’t happen in our town often, so it’s cool that we can train with the Marines for when medical emergencies really do happen,” said Stephanie Anne Johnson, one of four emergency medical technicians employed by the town. “Treating gunshot wounds and severe injuries are things we learned in class, and it feels good to be able to practice and know that, when we need it, the knowledge of how to deal with these situations is there.”
The entertainment aspect of the Marines in the town was a highlight during the weekend, shown by the groups that showed up for each part of the training evolution.
“This is great stuff,” said Mike Berg, lead EMT for Milford. “The kids get to come out and bloody themselves up and hang out with Marines. The Marines are just the cleanest cut guys, and everyone here loves them.”
Participating with the Marines gave the locals a chance to learn about what Marine do.
The weekend was a successful training rotation, and all went away with a feeling of accomplishment and a gaze toward the future.
“I can’t wait until we come back, and next year, we will make it bigger,” said Rodgers.
Plans for next year include this year’s players plus helicopter support and local media to cover the exercise.