As the year comes to a close one of The State Defense Forces that have been continuously growing and developing is The Washington State Guard. This year saw the organization get a new commander, Colonel Joseph Maassen, a prior service Veteran who served in The Washington Army National Guard. During the year The State Guard participated in multiple missions & exercises with The National Guard as well as multiple Federal, State and local agencies. They participated in the major Statewide exercise known as Cascadia Rising 2022. Here is more information regarding the exercise:
The Washington State Guard also participated in Operation Evergreen Tremor 2022, which simulated a massive earthquake and tsunami hitting Washington State. Soldiers trained in a wealth of tasks from relocating The National Guard Joint Operations Center to Eastern Washington to setting up tactical operation centers in various parts of the state.
Washington National Guard to conduct statewide readiness exercise
Contact: Karina Shagren
Phone: (253) 512-8222
Email: karina.shagren@mil.wa.govCAMP MURRAY, WA – Local communities will see members of the Washington National Guard (WANG) this week testing their ability to respond to a catastrophic Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ) earthquake and tsunami. Evergreen Tremor – a weeklong exercise kicking off June 17th – will involve more than 1000 Washington National Guard soldiers and airmen across the state, as well as local, state and federal emergency response agencies.
The exercise scenario will test the WANG’s earthquake response plan, and will involve training exercises at Camp Murray, the Shelton Fairgrounds and Airport, the Satsop Industrial Park, the Seattle Armory, King County, Mason County, Grays Harbor County Emergency Operations Centers and Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane. On June 23rd – the State Emergency Operations Center at Camp Murray will fully activate to help support the exercise.
Guards members will train on the following operations:
- Dual Status Command, the process in which National Guard and Active Duty soldiers work together under one Commander;
- Joint operations between the state and county emergency operation centers and the National Guard;
- Joint Incident Site Communications Capabilities (JISCC) operations, which will provide phone and internet services to areas that have lost communication abilities
Additionally, soldiers and airmen will exercise their ability to relocate the Washington National Guard’s Joint Operations Center to Eastern Washington, and set up tactical operation centers in other parts of the state. In the event of an actual CSZ earthquake and tsunami, damages will likely significantly reduce the capabilities of emergency operation centers in Western Washington.
The Cascadia Subduction Zone extends from northern California to Vancouver Island. The tectonic plates that make up the Cascadia fault have become wedged together, building energy that will eventually release. When that happens, the coastline could experience a possible magnitude 9.0 earthquake and a devastating tsunami. Scientific evidence indicates that a magnitude 8.0-9.0 earthquake occurs along the 800-mile long CSZ fault on average once every 200 to 500 years. The last major earthquake and tsunami along the fault occurred over 300 years ago in 1700.
Along with Evergreen Tremor, the WANG will participate in Cascadia Rising in June of 2016. Conducting successful life-saving and life-sustaining response operations in the aftermath of a Cascadia Subduction Zone disaster will hinge on the effective coordination and integration of governments at all levels – cities, counties, state agencies, federal officials, the military, tribal nations – as well as non-government organizations and the private sector. One of the primary goals of Cascadia Rising is to train and test this whole community approach to complex disaster operations together as a joint team.
The citizen-soldiers and airmen of the Washington National Guard are dedicated to the mission of safeguarding lives and property in Washington State and serving as sentinels for freedom overseas.
Along with these two major training operations, The State Guard also completed their tasked missions such as maintaining and repairing National Guard armories throughout the state. The State Guard also assisted in validating 25 National Guard armories in The Installation Status Report (ISR). The ISR program is a validation mission in which engineers are responsible to inspect Army National Guard Armories throughout the state to ensure the structures infrastructure meets U.S. Army standards of operation. Many other State Defense Forces, such as The Maryland Defense Force & Texas State Guard, assist their own National Guard with The ISR validation process,
To learn more about The Washington State Guard’s missions in 2022, have a read:
Active 2022 prepares Washington State Guard for more missions and growth in the future
Photo By Peter Chang | Warrant Officer Candidate Jared Morrison sits in front of the HF Radios in the Joint… read more
CAMP MURRAY, WA, UNITED STATES
11.30.2022
Story by Joseph Siemandel
Joint Force Headquarters – Washington National Guard
22The Washington State Guard ends 2022 with a new commander and a long list of accomplishments.
“We helped develop policies and procedures that support Native American Tribes during emergencies and disasters, assisted with establishing statewide National Guard armory communications, and participated in Cascadia Rising 2022 and Evergreen Tremor 2022,” said Maj. Peter Lukevich, chief of staff for the Washington State Guard. “In addition, we welcomed a new commander and realigned several primary and special staff positions in Headquarters, as well as processed the enlistments, promotions, and awards for many WSG soldiers.”
After a two-month search, Col. Joseph Maassen was selected as the new commander of the State Guard in March 2022. Maassen, a life-long Washingtonian, graduated from Lake Washington High School in Kirkland before earning a bachelor’s degree in political science and government from Seattle University and commissioning through the university’s Army Reserve Officer Training Corps program. Maassen served in the Washington Army National Guard and rose to the rank of Lt. Col. before retiring.
“I am humbled and honored to be selected as the commander of the Washington State Guard,” said Maassen during his introductory speech during March drill. “I am excited about working with such great volunteer soldiers that are committed to being prepared to help their state and nation.”
Right away Maassen and the State Guard members were put to the test, taking part in both Exercise Cascadia Rising 2022 and Exercise Evergreen Tremor 2022 in June. Designed to execute the Joint Operations Center’s Continuity of Operations plan following a Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquake scenario, State Guard members had the opportunity to work side by side with units of the Washington National Guard, Joint Staff, and the Alternate Joint Operations Center at Fairchild AFB.
Following the exercise, the State Guard went through its largest restructuring in the organization’s history.
“It now includes geographically dispersed detachments rather than using the older unit designations of battalions and brigades,” said Maassen.
The restructuring of the organization took the two battalions and established detachments located at Marysville, Camp Murray, Ridgefield, Spokane and Yakima.
In September, members of the State Guard completed a year-long project of re-establishing high frequency (HF) radios for the Washington Military Department as a means of communication following a disaster. Between September 2021 and September 2022, WSG members on State Active Duty conducted armory HF radio system testing, maintenance, repairs, and validations at 25 National Guard armories across the state. All of the sites were inspected, and corrective actions were identified. Of the 25 sites, 23 were reworked and categorized as fully mission capable.
“This effort will permit the Washington National Guard to communicate both within the organization and with other emergency response agencies in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency,” said Lukevich.
The State Guard closed out the year by participating in an historic forum with emergency managers from 25 federally recognized Indian tribes and nations in the state. Members played a significant role in planning and coordinating alongside members of the Washington Emergency Management Division.
“The tribes have a great relationship with the Military Department, we are always working to make it stronger,” said Chief Warrant Officer Three Bill Elliott, a tribal liaison with the Washington State Guard.
Sources: DVIDS – Washington Military Department
