U.S. Marine Chemical Biological Incident Response Force in Japan
Members of the United States Marine Corps’ Chemical Biological Incident Response Force (CBIRF) have come to Japan. They put on a show for the media yesterday, demonstrating how they were prepared to deal with a nuclear disaster:
Marines wearing special protective suits and masks trained to rescue an injured person by using a stretcher slung over from the top of a building, an ability the SDF lacks, according to GSDF officers.
They also trained for removing radioactive substances by water at a large tent. With the method, 600 people can be decontaminated within an hour.
The CBIRF consists of about 450 personnel in two initial response forces who are trained in chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and high-yield explosion operations, and can detect and identify agents, search for and rescue casualties and decontaminate and provide emergency medical care to those exposed.
The marines of the CBIRF are not being sent to Fukushima:
The noncombat unit will be based indefinitely at Yokota U.S. Air Force base, just west of Tokyo.
“We’re here to assist and advise the Japanese military and to be a quick reaction force if something really, really bad does happen. All indicators say it’s not going to, but it’s better to have us and not need us than to need us and not have us,” said Master Sgt. Mark Dumdie, 40, the most senior enlisted man in the outfit.
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