61st Civil Support Team Trains In Fayetteville With Local Emergency Crews

"We got a call at three this morning. We had no idea where we were going or what the incident was going to be like."

It's was only a test, but on Wednesday the 61st Civil Support Team out of North Little Rock at Camp Robinson worked with local emergency responders. They prepared for a biohazardous attack with a life like exercise.

"There was some chemical type substance inside. When the first responders arrived on scene shortly after, they started experiencing some symptoms," said Tom Osoborn, Commander of the 61st. "It could be a terrorist attack, it could be an accident."

The drill wasn't just for show.

"It helps keep us trained in responding to real world events," said Commander Osborn

The crews hope their run through will prepare them and keep folks in Northwest Arkansas out of harms way in a scary situation.

"We receive hundreds and hundreds of hours to prepare for our particular job. It should make people feel safer because they know that they have somebody in the state well trained," said Commander Osborn.

Fayetteville fire fighter Captain Trent North appreciates the extra hand in a disaster situation.

"It's nice knowing that we have this available to us in the event that there's an agent and these folks can help us identify that. They're designed to work with municipalities to help us respond to situations that are beyond our normal scope,"said Captain North.

Although they hope to never have to use these skills, the support team stands ready to assist.