Press Release
U.S. Army South Partners with Caribbean Nations to Conduct Regionally Oriented “Fuerzas Aliadas Humanitarias” Exercise
St. George’s, Grenada, Thursday, April 16, 2009 – Officers from United States Army South will conduct Fuerzas Aliadas Humanitarias (FA-HUM) 2009, April 15 – 29, a regionally oriented disaster relief command post and staff exercise, in three locations of the Caribbean and two locations of Central America.
The exercise includes military and civilian agencies from the Caribbean and Latin America, including the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency, and the Coordination Center for Natural Disaster Prevention in Central America. These two organizations have a long history of participation in the U.S. Southern Command’s humanitarian assistance program and disaster relief exercises.
Working with civilian and military partners from 22-nations in the Caribbean and Central America, U.S. Army South is working in a supporting role during the execution of the exercise. Earlier in the year, attendees from 22 participating countries attended mid-planning and final-planning conferences to work together to overcome multi-level logistical obstacles.
Ms. Ann-Denise Ashton, National Disaster Coordinator of the National Disaster Management Agency of Grenada, said that the main activity in Grenada will occur on the morning of April 22, when the natural disaster workers will react to a simulated tsunami. Immediately following the news of the disaster, the plan is for personnel to move to high ground, before taking steps to evacuate three cities. Ms. Andria Grosvenor, Programme Manager of Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency, has been working closely with officials from neighboring Caribbean countries to successfully execute this year’s exercise.
As a recipient of FA-HUM 2009, the people of Grenada will directly benefit from this collaborative effort. In addition to performing simulation exercises to better prepare for future disasters, this operation will help foster partnership with the U.S., to meet common goals for peace, progress, democracy and security of the Caribbean.
In addition to key civilian regional/national disaster management agencies, FA-HUM 2009 is a collaborative event that involves local first responders and partner nation participants. As a multi-staged exercise, it will combine a command post exercise; field training at multiple simulated “disaster site” locations, to be conducted between military disaster responders in the four countries of Grenada, Antigua, Costa Rica, and Honduras; and a robust after action review in St. Kitts-Nevis.
FA-HUM 2009 is scheduled to officially open April 15 in Costa Rica and it will continue until April 29 in St. Kitts-Nevis. Colonel Ehrich Rose, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-10, United States Army South, said that “We look forward to working as an integrated team, with our valued partners throughout the Caribbean and Central America to show our commitment to sustaining a long lasting and valued partnership.”
The exercise will culminate in St. Kitts-Nevis where a robust after action review will be staged. As a multi-staged exercise that involves thousands of participants from 22 countries of the Caribbean and Central America, the exercise is a premier simulated disaster which will help to better prepare for future real-life calamities. Key governmental and military officials plan to attend the AAR, to be hosted by St. Kitts-Nevis.