11th MEU (SOC) conducts NEO exercise, assists embassy test emergency evacuation system 

Marines and sailors of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, (Special Operations Capable) assisted the staff of the United States Embassy in testing their emergency evacuation system, known as the Emergency Warden System, during a training exercise here.

The purpose of the exercise was to test the American Embassy's capability to alert and assemble American citizens residing in Qatar for evacuation in the event of a crisis, said Stephen Kochuba, Cultural Attaché, U.S. Embassy Doha, Qatar.

According to Pat Capriglione, Embassy Regional Security Officer, the test had been scheduled two years in advance and is not related to any particular threat.

"We have every confidence in the Qatari government's security capability and procedures and we do not have serious ongoing concerns about the safety of American citizens in Doha, but embassies around the world are required to routinely test their Warden Systems," said Capriglione.

"This was very good timing for both the MEU and embassy," said Maj. Thomas J. Impellitteri, Assistant Operations Officer, 11th MEU, (SOC) Camp Pendleton, Calif., regarding the exercise.

The 11th MEU (SOC) was already scheduled to be in the area to take part in the annual multinational military exercise known as "Eagle Resolve." So while the embassy tested its alert system, the MEU was able to conduct a mock noncombatant evacuation exercise, said Impellitteri.

The NEO exercise began on Monday evening when a Marine embassy reinforcement element from C Company, Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 11th MEU, (SOC) Camp Pendleton, Calif., arrived at the embassy in waves via CH-46E Sea Knight helicopters from the amphibious attack ship the USS Peleliu.

As soon as the Sea Knights touched down on the embassy soccer field, the Marines went into action. Within minutes, a security force set up a perimeter defense and secured the embassy.

The next day, another wave of Marines arrived and set up an Evacuation Control Center. After establishing the ECC, the Marines and Navy hospital corpsmen, along with members of the Embassy's Health Unit, began processing a group of 100 American citizens who volunteered for the mock evacuation drill.

The exercise gave the Marines an opportunity to work closely with various sections of the embassy, including members of the Embassy's Consular Section, Marine Security Guards, the Regional Security Office, and volunteer American citizens living in Doha.

"This exercise gave us a real-world look at how the embassy operates," said Capt. Jeffrey Dyal, Company Commander, C Company.  "We got an invaluable opportunity to work with the Marine Security Guard Detachment and with the actual RSO and see how his staff provides security inside the embassy," said Dyal.

According to Dyal, working with an actual embassy security staff was especially important for his Marines because the staff gave them valuable input as to where he could position his security force to be most effective. It also gave the Marines and embassy personnel the opportunity to set ground rules and discuss each other’s needs and capabilities.

During the mock evacuation portion of the exercise, the group of American volunteers was asked to prepare for this evacuation as if it were actually occurring. The date and time of the exercise had been planned well in advance so that everyone involved could be properly prepared. The evacuees were collected from pre-determined Warden Sites or "safe havens" around Doha, and whisked to the embassy in a convoy of diplomatic vehicles, said Kochuba.

At the embassy compound, the mock evacuees arrived as if it was a real evacuation; many brought along their children, luggage and other necessities. The participants were individually screened for weapons and contraband and were asked to provide documents such as visas, passports and medical records. The documents were checked for validity to ensure the identity of those being evacuated. The participants were briefed on what to pack for an evacuation and then sent in teams of 10 for their mock evacuation via helicopter. The groups were loaded into the helicopters on the lawn of the embassy.

During a real evacuation, the participants would then have been flown to a safe location or to an airport from which they could fly out of the country. During this exercise however, participants were not flown out. Instead, they were allowed to explore a Sea Knight that was put on display and allowed to ask questions and take pictures with the crew and aircraft.

According to Capriglione during a real evacuation, he expects the site to be hectic. Although the exercise was not as frenzied as he expects a real evacuation to be, the training did help the Marines and embassy personnel fine-tune their systems and processes. It also helped them to identify possible problems and solutions in a safe training environment.

This was also good practice in dealing with the logistics of processing evacuees, identifying security threats and interacting with evacuees. It was good training in dealing with stressed, angry and scared individuals, some of which did not have the right documentation or did not follow or were not aware of rules such as only one suitcase per evacuee and no pets, said Capriglione.

After the exercise, both Marines and embassy personnel commented that they encountered fewer problems than expected.

According to Chase Untermeyer, U.S. Ambassador to Qatar, the exercise was a complete success due in large part to teamwork displayed by all parties involved.  "We have had remarkable cooperation from our military colleagues and from the Qatari authorities. We are grateful for both, and for the opportunity to implement this important exercise," said Untermeyer.

Dyal and Impellitteri said they were also very happy with the support and cooperation they received from embassy personnel and the Qatari government.
However, according to Marine and embassy personnel, the most important measure of the success of this exercise came from comments from the American citizen volunteers.

Kochuba said the participants were pleased to have the opportunity to participate in the drill and said it made them feel safer to know the embassy was prepared in the event that an evacuation would ever be necessary.

Dyal said several Americans approached him with similar comments. They told him how reassured they felt seeing the Marines there and knowing that if an evacuation were necessary, the Marines would come to save the day.