Sioux Falls Fire Rescue will be engaged in joint training exercises with the 82nd Civil Support Team that is based in Rapid City. The exercises will begin on Sunday, June 15, and will end on Thursday, June 19.

The Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Civil Support Teams were established to deploy rapidly to assist a local incident commander in determining the nature and extent of an attack or incident; provide expert technical advice on WMD response operations; and help identify and support the arrival of follow-on state and federal military response assets. They are joint units and, as such, can consist of both Army National Guard and Air National Guard personnel, with some of these units commanded by Air National Guard lieutenant colonels. There are 55 CSTs in the country.

The 82nd CST was founded in fiscal year 2005 and certified on July 13, 2007.

The following is a schedule of the events for the week:

• Sunday, June 15—The 82nd CST will land at Landmark Aviation, 3501 Aviation Avenue, at approximately 1:30 p.m. SFFR will be assisting the CST to test its deployment capability. (Best time for photo op will be 1:30 p.m. Contact BC Dirksen if you would like this opportunity.)
• Monday, June 16—The 82nd CST will conduct classroom instruction in the morning followed by a practical application in the afternoon. This will take place at the Fire Training Center, 3401 North Western Avenue. (Best time for photo op will be 2 p.m.)
• Tuesday, June 17—SFFR and the 82nd CST will be conducting a joint exercise at Sioux Falls Christian Elementary located at 700 South Sneve Avenue. The exercise will begin at 9 a.m. and conclude at approximately 4:30 p.m. The command post for the exercise will be located at 15th Street and Churchill Avenue. (Best time for photo op will be at 10 a.m.)
• Thursday, June 19—SFFR and the 82nd CST will be performing competency based training at Land O’Lakes Purina Feed located at 1201 North Ellis Road from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. (Best time for photo op will be 10 a.m.)