Fort Hood soldiers shift to underground training to prepare for battlefield medical care

FORT HOOD, TX – This week, the 1st Medical Brigade of the III Armored Corps astatine Fort Hood, Texas, held a grooming workout called "Operation Silver Lightning." 

The exercise, according to the 1st Medical Brigade, "is designed to simulate the challenges of providing precocious aesculapian attraction successful a contested, large-scale combat environment."

Between March 23 and April 1, the 1st Medical Brigade employed the tactical limb of the Army Health System. Combat medics, optometrists, doctors, veterinarians, and different aesculapian unit simulated a wide casualty lawsuit successful combat conditions successful underground tunnels connected the Fort Hood base. 

This week, Fox News got an up-close look astatine however this grooming workout was implemented.

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Soldiers grooming connected the wounded, oregon relation players during a grooming workout astatine Fort Hood.  (Fox News)

"So the medics person understood that you cannot acceptable up a multi-tent tract infirmary that occupies 4 oregon five, up to 15 acres and provides that world-class care, supra crushed anymore," said Col. Kamil Sztalkoper, manager of nationalist affairs for the III Armored Corps.

Sztalkoper said the displacement is driven successful portion by drone warfare observed successful the warfare successful Ukraine. 

300 Soldiers dainty and enactment connected fake wounded soldiers for a grooming exercise. (Fox News)

"We person to disperse, fig one. And past fell successful plain sight, is fig two. So dispersing is utilizing aggregate antithetic kinds of locations. Hiding successful plain show could beryllium successful a building, a warehouse, oregon here. Using 1 of our unsocial grooming facilities that was designed successful the 1940s. Utilized successful the 1950s to location atomic and atomic weapons," Sztalkoper told Fox News.

The tunnels person since been decommissioned and cleaned retired for usage arsenic a grooming installation — successful this case, an underground tract hospital. Sztalkoper said the respective miles of tunnels are utilized arsenic a "triage exigency room, operating room, vet, optometry [and] clinics," allowing troops to debar what helium described arsenic the increasing drone menace observed successful Ukraine.

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During this exercise, astir 300 soldiers and relation players portraying wounded troops ran done antithetic evacuation and aesculapian drills, with soldiers rushing the wounded from a chopper to a subject aesculapian conveyance and past into the tunnels.

Combat medics are past trained to dainty wounded soldiers, or, relation players. Each of the wounded imitated the symptom and symptoms of an wounded that could hap connected the battlefield.  

Soldiers arsenic relation players imitate the symptom and wounded of battlefield wounds. (Fox News)

"Really the dilemma for them is managing however they woody with each of this with what they have," said Col. Brad Franklin, lawman commandant of the 1st Medical Brigade.

Franklin, who besides serves arsenic a main nurse, said helium has experienced akin challenges successful real-world operations. 

"Knowing you don't person capable people, you don't person capable surgeons, you don't person capable nurses, don't person capable medics and there's much patients than you tin handle," Franklin said. "So it's forcing them to triage, reverse triage and instrumentality attraction of these casualties."

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Aside from attraction for soldiers, K-9s and their handlers are besides grooming successful this exercise. Further down a acheronian tunnel, veterinarians enactment connected a simulated wounded K-9, portion the handler is being treated for simulated injuries crossed the room.

Lt. Col. Cynthia Fallness, commandant of the 43rd Medical Detachment providing veterinary work support, said the unit conducting this grooming are doctoral-level veterinarians.

"In this case, it is simply a traumatic fracture, a compound fracture of the hind limb. And the canine besides has a thorax coiled and also, is having occupation breathing due to the fact that there's a traumatic wounded to the mouth," Fallness said. 

"So these are our diesel dogs," she said of the fake K-9 connected the operating table.

Soldiers signifier each aspects of a wide casualty successful combat, similar evacuating the wounded (Fox News)

Out of the dozens of combat medics training, 1 medic says his relation successful the subject is much than conscionable a job. 

"My gramps really served successful World War II arsenic a combat medic," William Rothwell, a combat medic with the 1st Medical Brigade, told Fox News. "He went into Normandy, I believe, aft the propulsion connected Omaha Beach."

Rothwell, a Boston native, ne'er met his grandfather, but heard stories from his father.

"Which was conscionable however brutal it was, however unsmooth it was. Medicine backmost past wasn't arsenic great. So handling patients was somewhat traumatic." 

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In this training, Rothwell is getting that real-world aesculapian combat acquisition earlier stepping ft connected a battlefield. 

"The stories of however overmuch helium cared and was consenting to go, you know, the mile and supra to marque definite that helium tin get his brothers location … truly touched me," Rothwell said. "So that's benignant of however I consciousness successful this situation."