AEDC firefighters receive UXO identification training

  • Published
  • By Philip Lorenz III
  • AEDC/PA
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. --  Denny Timmons, AEDC's installation restoration program and military munitions response program manager, was recently approached by Jim Miller and Yorky Knowles with EA Engineering, Corp., offering to provide AEDC's firefighters and security police with current unexploded ordinance (UXO) identification training.

Timmons said the timing for the UXO training is tied to the current sub-surface investigation phase of an ongoing, multi-year base-wide munitions remediation program with the goal of making Munitions Response Areas (MRAs) safe for reuse consistent with anticipated future land uses at AEDC.

Tech. Sgt. James Key, who has been the weapons safety manager at AEDC since May 2011, said it helps to understand why UXO's are on the base and the risks they pose.

"Since this area was originally the Camp Forrest camp and maneuver area back in the 1940s, there are a lot of UXOs that were left over," he said. "The recent training conducted by Yorky Knowles and Jim Miller was provided to familiarize the first responders at Arnold with the types of UXOs they may encounter. It is especially important for them to know what they are looking for if they get a phone call from a hunter or other recreational user reporting a possible UXO. It can be difficult to locate the items since they have been exposed to the elements for 70 years. Showing them pictures of what the items look like in their current state can help with identification of the items out in the field."

Key said some UXOs are inert and not a risk, but it is equally possible many of them are still active and if disturbed by human contact, could detonate.

AEDC firefighter Sam Teat said operations level personnel attended the recent UXO training.

"I believe it was a good refresher on what we need to look out for while on wild land fires in and around the base," he said.

Jeff Thames, AEDC Fire Department fire and emergency services training officer, said the training the firefighters received was invaluable, whether it served as a refresher course or their first exposure to the material presented.

"Its benefits are far reaching in that the knowledge gained could very well be years added to the life of someone who happens to encounter a UXO," he said. "Mishandling these objects could be catastrophic. This training was all about everyone going home safe at the end of the day," Thames said. "We had approximately 45 firefighters attending this class."

Thames added, "We are not only unique here at Arnold due to our current mission, but our history is one that has left remnants of the importance of our past mission. This type of training is eye opening, allowing us to understand that while new and innovative technology is necessary for progress, the knowledge and understanding of our past can be just as important to our future. It will give them a new and different perspective when responding and fighting grass or brush fires."

James Wenger, an assistant chief of operations at AEDC's fire department, said the level of training at the recent class was critical to the complex's first responders.

"The most common scenario for us would be while attacking a natural cover fire in those areas or responding to an injured hunter or hiker who has wandered into that area by mistake," he said. "Most of us have no idea the type or quantity of munitions used back in the 1940's at the firing ranges. Gaining the knowledge of types and numbers of hazards present give us an edge we didn't have before for that area. Unless you're a munitions expert like the instructor was, the average first responder wouldn't have been able to distinguish fused munitions from a log in the woods, based on the age of the munitions."

Regarding how the information presented would be used in a broader context, Wenger said, "This information is key to enabling us to pre-plan future incidents in these areas and to include this information into our annual training schedule for local hazards training along with munitions training.

"Additionally, if we have mutual aid support from surrounding communities, we can pass this information on to responding units when conducting initial site briefings upon their arrival on scene. This will ensure that the future safety of our local response agencies is not compromised by sending folks into an area blindly. Hazards will be briefed to include pictures of known items removed from those areas and hazard areas not yet inspected."