Ulaanbaatar
United States and Mongolia Successfully Conduct Khangai-21 Disaster Response Exercise
Society
Ulaanbaatar
/MONTSAME/. From September 14-23, the Civil Military Support Element of the
U.S. Embassy partnered with the National Emergency Management Agency of
Mongolia to organize the Khangai-21 Disaster Response Exercise in Arkhangai
Province.
Working
together with Local Emergency Management Agencies from Arkhangai, Bayankhongor,
Bulgan, Khuvsgul, Uvurkhangai, and Zavkhan medical and rescue personnel from
the U.S. Air Force led training exercises in confined space and high-angle
rescue, along with support training in emergency medicine, crisis
communications, and emergency management. In addition to the more than 180
Mongolian participants, the defense attachés of Japan, the Republic of Korea,
and the Republic of Turkey attended as observers.
Due
to the risk and frequency of seismic activity in Mongolia, special focus was
given to earthquake response in order to help Mongolian rescue personnel better
prepare to provide assistance and relief to the people of Mongolia in the event
of such a disaster. Training consisted of extensive classroom and field
instruction on how to extract and evacuate disaster victims safely from
confined spaces and high-angle environments. At the same time, medical
personnel received training on how to triage and treat patients during an
emergency. Additionally, officials from emergency operations centers received
classroom instruction on efficient management and resourcing of rescue and
medical personnel; how to communicate effectively with the public during a
crisis; and ways to work with international non-governmental organizations to
provide humanitarian relief. At the end of the training, participants
successfully engaged in a large-scale exercise simulating a real-world natural
disaster.
Due
to the COVID-19 outbreak, the United States and Mongolia were forced to cancel
the Gobi Wolf multi-national disaster response exercise held annually in
Mongolia. The Khangai-21 exercise allowed U.S. and Mongolian rescue personnel
to solidify their productive partnership in the interim. Lessons learned from
Khangai-21 will inform planning for the much larger Gobi Wolf exercise expected
to resume in 2022. Khangai-21 further enhanced the strong bonds between the
United States and Mongolia while making great progress in preparing Mongolian
rescuers to protect and assist the people of Mongolia in the event of a natural
disaster.
