Hammer ran its vehicles hard, and its staff harder ©D Kaszeta
three and four generally remained in the van unless summoned. Number two was the primary medic
on the team and often was the driver. His/her primary role was to secure airways and breathing, and to administer necessary antidotes. Number three was the decontamination specialist and was primarily tasked with removing contaminated clothing and caring for any gross contamination of skin and eyes. Number four was the detection and identification specialist, who would attempt to assess the nature of the threat and obtain a sample. In 2004, when additional personnel became available, a number five was added. This person would ride with whatever local ambulance was assigned to the motorcade, and also serve as coordinator for external support. The number five role was not sufficiently developed during my time at Hammer. Each team member had special rucksacks with their gear for their assigned role.
Equipment changed incrementally
during my years. At that time the team leader wore a specialty protective undergarment and socks beneath normal clothing, and carried a military MCU-2P protective mask. The team members wore a blue variant of the joint service lightweight integrated suit technology (JSLIST) suit, now enshrined as the Saratoga Hammer suit, and carried an Interspiro respirator that either ran off SCBA cylinder or an FR- 64 filter canister. Our earlier decontamination equipment included those ancient standbys fuller’s earth and bleach, and the Lineback vehicles, but were replaced by more modern foam with the CASCAD sprayer and the now ubiquitous reactive skin decontamination lotion (RSDL), the USSS being an early adopter. Detection equipment changed more
or less by the year as new systems were fielded, and Hammer was one of the earliest adopters of handheld assays for
biological detection and one of the earliest users of radiation detection pagers. Except where prohibited by foreign governments (eg my foray into the Vatican without being on the proper list), team members carried normal USSS issue Sig Sauer pistols. The hub of Hammer operations was
the Lineback van. From 1997 to early 2004, the team’s vehicles comprised four vans (pictured), which coincided roughly with maximum the number of people TSD could support on deployments. By 2003, these vans were in dire shape and were replaced in 2004 with larger, bespoke modified Ford ambulances (pictured). These had more space for equipment but a larger footprint on cargo planes and were the only diesel vehicle in the USSS motorcade package. You could ask whether some transportation advance agent would be so petty as to always pick petrol stations without diesel pumps… I leave the answer to your imagination.
www.cbrneworld.com CBRNe Convergence, Orlando, USA, 6-8 November 2018
www.cbrneworld.com/convergence2018
February 2018 CBRNe WORLD
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