Bridge Collapse Training ExerciseSoldiers with the 250th Engineers Company, Connecticut National Guard, and the Vermont Agency of Transportation (AOT) came together for a simulated bridge collapse exercise, Berlin, Vt., July 29, 2016. This training provided an opportunity for both groups to gain knowledge, while bringing together two entities who don’t often get to train together as a group.

High Intensity Training during Vigilant Guard 2016When training to respond to an emergency, high intensity hands-on training is imperative to improve skills. A simulated building collapse surrounded by broken concrete included casualty actors, crushed and overturned vehicles, 185-pound mannequins with realistic-like injuries, and various other placed obstacles created an intense learning environment at Camp Johnson, Colchester, Vt, July 28, 2016. This training was planned not only for the Vermont National Guard, but civilian entities and military units from various states. This scenario is just one of many that took place during Vigilant Guard 2016.