Page 5 - Fort Irwin High Desert Warrior, October 2020

4 High Desert Warrior www.aerotechnews.com/ntcfortirwin www.aerotechnews.com/ntcfortirwin High Desert Warrior 5
October 2020
October 2020
Military Life MEDDAC

California Wild res hit close to

Upcoming -10/12: Commissary reduced/holiday hours (9a.m. -5p.m.)
-10/13: Walk to End Domestic Violence: Blue Track (9a.m.)
Events -10/16: Commissary reduced hours due to power outage (9a.m. -5p.m.) home for some at Fort Irwin

-10/17: Bi-annual Post-wide Power Outage (6a.m. - 6p.m.)
-10/17: Commissary reduced hours due to power outage (9a.m. -5p.m.)
-10/27: MEDDAC Breast Cancer Awareness Run/Walk: WACH (7a.m.)
*Live #FacebookRoundup every Wednesday at 2:30p.m., where the Garrison Com- -10/29: Halloween at Fort Irwin Trunk or Treat: PX Parking Lot (5p.m.) By Janell J. Lewis Ford this passes

mand Team answers your questions on the official Fort Irwin Facebook page, Facebook. -10/29 - 10/30: Movie Under the Stars Drive-in Movie: Army Field (7-9p.m.) • Please use ceiling fans if you have them

com/FtIrwin and KNTC 89.5FM The Heat radio. NTC/Fort Irwin Garrison Public A airs

October 2020 Calendar: *For more information, you can visit the NTC website at home.army.mil/irwin or FORT IRWIN, Calif. — More than 19,000 re ghters have been • Housing suggests that residents who keep their garage doors open

-10/1 - 10/2: Movie Under the Stars Drive-in Movie: Army Field (7-9p.m.) contact the Public Affairs Office at 760-380-4511; the MWR at 760-380-5111 (Facebook. battling more than 8,000 wild res burning across nearly four million all day to cool o , will need to keep them closed

-10/6 - 10/7: Front Yard BBQ Competition (3-6p.m. both days) com/FortIrwinFMWR) or the respective organization that is hosting the event* acres in the state of California. More than 26 people have died and Housing also o ered free HVAC lters, recommending that residents
thousands of homes evacuated and reduced to ashes. may need to replace them more frequently than once a month with the
Fort Irwin soldiers, residents and employees began feeling the e ects increase in smoke from the recent wild res.

of the res and smoke, although the installation is more than hour from From the Directorate of Public Works (DPW)

the nearest wild re. Air quality recommendations:
First-ever division level training rotation at NTC complete On Sept. 8, Lesly Shults posted to the Fort Irwin Connection page, How to roughly estimate air quality based on visibility without an
saying, “Is it just our house... but, the smoke is inside & it smells so bad air quality monitor or airport visibility estimate: Face away from the sun;

NTC/Fort Irwin Garrison Public A airs it woke us up & now we can’t sleep.” Determine the limit of your visible range by looking for targets at known

Ti any Turley said, “I have my rescue inhaler and this is the 1st time
NATIONAL TRAINING CENTER, Calif. — The I’ve actually had to use it this year.” distances (miles); Visible range is that point at which even high contrast
National Training Center and Fort Irwin have completed Autumn Avila chimed in on the same page, saying, “It smells like objects totally disappear; Use the values above to determine the local AQI

the Army’s rst-ever divisional training rotation. e Ro- mesquite burning. So sad... But I just have to keep reminding myself Reduce smoke exposure indoors
tational Training Unit was the 1st Infantry Division out of how absolutely lucky we are to be safer than most other parts of the state.” Stay inside with the doors and windows closed. Whether you have a

Fort Riley, Kansas. Many spoke of respiratory issues, eye problems and bad smells, central air conditioning system or a room unit, use high efficiency filters Amanda McMaster

“ is last rotation was a pretty historic achievement in the although some didn’t experience smoke inside their home or any to capture ne particles from smoke. Ask an air conditioning professional Fort Irwin resident, Amanda McMaster took these photos

last 20 years of the Training Center,” NTC’s Commanding other issues. what type of high efficiency filter your air conditioner can accept. on di erent days to show the e ect of the amount of

General, Brig. Gen. David Lesperance said. “We dropped an e Villages at Fort Irwin/Housing o ered these tips: For air quality information, go to the airnow.gov website, or your smoke that crept onto the installation from the California

entire division here to train in a way that we’ve never done • Residents should keep all their doors and windows closed until state air quality agency’s website. wild res burning across the state. The mountains, forestry
before and it took a lot of team work to bring this rotation and skyline were no longer visible.
across the line.”

e 1st Infantry Division said the weeks-long crucible conventional forces woven into one, dynamic environment.
tested every soldiers’ mental and physical toughness as teams Decisive Action Rotations at NTC ensure Army Brigade
from squad to division-level worked together to overcome Combat Teams remain versatile, responsive, and consistently
every challenge the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment threw available for current and future contingencies.
at them. Lesperance and NTC’s Command Sgt. Maj. William

e rotations were developed to create a common training Justice thanked the Operations Group, 11th ACR and ev-
scenario for use throughout the Army. e training is re ec- ery organization on post, every Army civilian, every DOD

tive of complexities of potential adversaries the nation could contractor and all families that teamed up to make this a
face and include guerrilla, insurgents criminal and near-peer successful rotation.
From DENZEL, Page 4 From LEADERS, Page 2
“In accordance with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan, at Home General Order and a Lead 6 Sends memo.
what we can anticipate as the next series of openings He went into detail about Opportunity Leave au-
include Chapel services indoors to a limited degree, thorizations, expanding non-essential travel to Apple
an additional gym in the form of Memorial Gym Valley, Victorville, Hesperia, Death Valley National
(Freedom Gym is under construction), as well as Park, Joshua Tree and the Mojave National Preserve.
some restaurants with some limited indoor seating e general also said non-DOD ID card holders

capacity,” he said. are permitted to visit with an approved exception to

e Fort Irwin Chapel opened in-person services policy at the O6/O5 level. Special unit events and
on Sept. 27 and Memorial Fitness opened on Sept. offi cial functions are now permitted with 50 people
21, after re-closing in July. or less with an O6 approval or 50 or more people
“We’ve already opened our bowling alley but with Lesperance’s approval. PT is authorized at the
then the next tier of openings would be additional squad level.
capacity of restaurants and potentially outdoor Lesperance said he hoped everyone enjoys a
Casey Slusser, Fort Irwin Garrison Public A airs bars,” he said. much-deserved Opportunity/Block Leave and

e U.S. Army has asked NTC to support the lming of a feature production high- On Sept. 15, the Fort Irwin Exchange began reminded everyone to ensure COVID-19 safety
lighting a former Fort Irwin Soldier who died in combat. is lm crew sees it as a great providing outdoor dining at the Post Exchange (PX) measures during that period and upon return to

opportunity to honor Soldiers and share their untold stories with the American people. and Town Center food court facilities, including post. According to the Opportunity Leave order,
Organizers believe their collaboration with the installation will ensure the success of the Subway, Taco Bell, Starbucks and Pizza Hut. soldiers will begin a 14-day restriction of movement
lm and telling this hero’s story. ere is limited seating capacity and dining is immediately after signing in from leave, which is a

In accordance with safety and health measures for the Centers for Disease Control available during the normal operational hours of less restrictive status than quarantine.
and Prevention, the production team was pre-screened and tested for COVID-19 before the businesses. All proper sanitation practices and “Remember, it’s your continued vigilance and
entering the installation. All parties maintained social distancing while engaging with physical distancing will be in place. adherence to our policies and CDC guidelines that
community members. On Sept. 30, Lesperance published a new Stay have kept our community safe,” Lesperance said.
For more information go to home.army.mil/irwin For more information go to home.army.mil/irwin