Fort Bliss Monitor

32nd AAMDC Gets Gassed

Army News Service

Sgt. Maj. David Poehlein tries to catch his breath after exiting the gas chamber filled with o-chlorobenzyli-denemalononitrile, or tear gas.

Soldiers calmly walked into the room filled with o-chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile, or tear gas. Without hesitation they began performing the tasks they were ordered to do. Once the tasks were complete they walked out as calmly as they walked in, not shedding a tear.

Soldiers of 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command performed a mask confidence test Thursday at the Tobin Wells Gas Chamber. Pvt. Derek Sheppeard, 32nd AAMDC Headquarters and Headquarters Battery nuclear biological chemical noncommissioned officer, said the purpose of the common task training was to test the protective mask and the joint services light integrated suit technology.

“They learned how to put it on efficiently and effectively to protect them in a chemical environment,” he said.
Once the Soldiers donned their equipment they entered the gas chamber and were asked to perform several tasks to make sure their equipment was working properly, according to Sheppeard.

“Once inside the room, Soldiers did a variety of exercises to ensure there were no defects to their equipment. Exercises like the side straddle hop, push-ups and the neck rotation along with others,” he said. While in the chamber, Soldiers had to the option to take off their masks, according to Sheppeard.

Soldiers perform several tasks, such as push-ups and bending over, to ensure their equipment works properly.

First Sgt. Carmen-Mercedez Acevedo, 32nd AAMDC, HHB first sergeant, said 80 percent of the unit participated in the exercise.

“We have make-up training in May during our lanes training. This is so we can get the rest of the unit trained,” she said.

Acevedo said there were some minor issues with some of the mask but was correctable on the spot.
“This was good training for everybody and a lot of new Soldiers had never been through it besides Basic Training. This is training that was way overdue,” she said.



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	February 10, 2005

Sgt. Maj. David Poehlein gets brave and takes off his mask while inside the gas chamber. Sgt. 1st Class Danta Harrell does his Ray Charles impression after taking a big breath of CS before exiting the Tobin Wells Gas Chamber. <map name="boxmap-b4"> <area shape="rect" coords="0, 589, 120, 600" href="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm/privacy-policy.html?o=1" > <area coords="0,0,10000,10000" href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=&creative=92501&camp=8117&link_code=dl1&path=subst/misc/amazon-cobrand-cc/v3/marketing-from-associates-step1.html/ref%3Db1_assoc_29" > </map>	32nd AAMDC Gets Gassed Army News Service Sgt. Maj. David Poehlein tries to catch his breath after exiting the gas chamber filled with o-chlorobenzyli-denemalononitrile, or tear gas. Soldiers calmly walked into the room filled with o-chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile, or tear gas. Without hesitation they began performing the tasks they were ordered to do. Once the tasks were complete they walked out as calmly as they walked in, not shedding a tear. Soldiers of 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command performed a mask confidence test Thursday at the Tobin Wells Gas Chamber. Pvt. Derek Sheppeard, 32nd AAMDC Headquarters and Headquarters Battery nuclear biological chemical noncommissioned officer, said the purpose of the common task training was to test the protective mask and the joint services light integrated suit technology. “They learned how to put it on efficiently and effectively to protect them in a chemical environment,” he said. Once the Soldiers donned their equipment they entered the gas chamber and were asked to perform several tasks to make sure their equipment was working properly, according to Sheppeard. “Once inside the room, Soldiers did a variety of exercises to ensure there were no defects to their equipment. Exercises like the side straddle hop, push-ups and the neck rotation along with others,” he said. While in the chamber, Soldiers had to the option to take off their masks, according to Sheppeard. Soldiers perform several tasks, such as push-ups and bending over, to ensure their equipment works properly. First Sgt. Carmen-Mercedez Acevedo, 32nd AAMDC, HHB first sergeant, said 80 percent of the unit participated in the exercise. “We have make-up training in May during our lanes training. This is so we can get the rest of the unit trained,” she said. Acevedo said there were some minor issues with some of the mask but was correctable on the spot. “This was good training for everybody and a lot of new Soldiers had never been through it besides Basic Training. This is training that was way overdue,” she said.