PITTSBORO — Chatham County emergency responders partnered with several other local agencies to support a jump exercise last Tuesday at Jordan Lake with US Army Special Operations Command 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) of Fort Bragg.
One hundred soldiers loaded onto CASA C-212 aircraft, parachuted into Jordan Lake, and floated until they were “rescued” by local partner agencies. Several crews from water rescue teams awaited the soldiers’ arrival in boats, pulled them on board, and delivered them to shore.
The 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) requested Chatham County to support the training exercise, and Chatham County Emergency Management coordinated all public safety participants, including:
• Chatham County Emergency Management
• Chatham County Emergency Communications
• Chatham County AUXCOMM
• Chatham County Sheriff’s Office
• North Chatham Fire Department
• South Orange Rescue Squad
• First Health of the Carolinas
The purpose of the exercise is for soldiers to build proficiency jumping into different environments, while local agencies gain water rescue experience.
“A water jump aims to allow units to validate safety training when jumping in an environment where water is present. Specifically deep water, there is always a potential for change in winds that can place you in water,” said MAJ Bradford Long, 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) Commander. “The average jumper has heavy equipment and a heavy parachute and are not used to swimming in those conditions — this exercise allows units to practice safety measures in a safe, controlled environment to execute their training.”
“The military is the only group that local agencies can train with on such a large scale, in these types of dynamic environments, and under real-world conditions,” said Chatham County Emergency Management Director Steve Newton. “Public safety agencies respond to incidents on Jordan Lake and our rivers, especially during the summer months. The jump exercise is critical for different agencies to practice coordination, communications, and rescues on the water which we could neither emulate on land nor safely do with traditional volunteers as victims.”
Newton added that he hopes to continue receiving requests to support these and other future training missions.
More information about Chatham County Emergency Management and Chatham County Emergency Operations can be found on the County website. More information about the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade can be found on the US Army Special Operations Command website.