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Marine Corps Installations - West conducting Exercise Semper Durus 2016, a full-scale, Anti-Terrorism and Force Protection exercise, April 25 – 29 at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Semper Durus is a regional command post exercise that is comprised of a series of field training scenarios designed to reinforce operational response capabilities supporting MCI-West installations, tenant commands and families on base.

Photo by Cpl. Shaltiel Dominguez

Exercise Semper Durus 2016 coming to close

28 Apr 2016 | Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton Public Affairs The Official United States Marine Corps Public Website

Marine Corps Installations - West is conducting Exercise Semper Durus 2016, a full-scale, Anti-Terrorism and Force Protection exercise, April 25 – 29.

Semper Durus is a regional command post exercise that is comprised of a series of field training scenarios designed to reinforce operational response capabilities supporting MCI-West installations, tenant commands and families on base.

The exercise, which wraps up tomorrow morning, is designed to improve regional command and control, enhance interagency coordination, and improve installation capabilities to respond to, and recover from, a crisis event and validate the installation mission assurance all-hazard plan. In order to do this, leadership utilizes the MCI-West emergency operations center, which provided command, control and communications to the various base units involved.

“Exercise Semper Durus is important as it gives us the opportunity to improve and refine our ability to protect our Marines, Sailors, families and civilians from a variety of potential threats,” said Col. Greg Martin, Assistant Chief of Staff Operations at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. “We have exercised thoroughly to handle active-shooter, terrorism and other potential threats to our installations.”

The EOC coordinated information and control within the West Coast region, with Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, MCAS Yuma, MCAS Miramar, and Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow participating in the exercise.

Other units participating in the exercise include Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, Mountain Warfare Training Center Bridgeport, and Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center 29 Palms.

Throughout the five-day exercise, sections coordinated with each other to tackle different scenarios such as an increase to Force Protection Delta, an active shooter incident, an explosive device threat, a base shelter in place, evacuation of residential areas and other simulated incidents on base.

“Our exercise this year was very successful and has improved our ability to plan for and respond to a variety of threats across our region,” said Martin. “Every opportunity to train allows us to get better at the regional, unit and individual levels.”

This year, various improvements to the EOC’s data infrastructure and new equipment were introduced, improving command and control among the units involved.

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