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# Wisconsin, Nicaragua delegation share emergency management techniques

By Staff Sgt. Emily J. RussellWisconsin National Guard

MILWAUKEE, Wisc., - The Wisconsin Department of  Military Affairs hosted a Nicaraguan delegation recently to share emergency  management practices, as part of the state partnership program. 

Since 2003, the Wisconsin-Nicaragua partnership program  has resulted in dozens of exchanges to share knowledge, best practices and  experience while building closer ties between the two militaries. 

Seven members of the Nicaraguan delegation participated  in a May 25-28 visit including Brig. Gen. Mario Perezcassar, the Nicaraguan  chief of civil defense. 

Their primary purpose was to unite Wisconsin Emergency  Management and Wisconsin National Guard officials with their counterparts from  Nicaragua to discuss future exchange opportunities that can increase both  organizations effectiveness in this critical area. 

Geographically, Nicaragua is located in a precarious  region where natural disaster is a yearround threat. The rainy season can bring  hurricanes, floods or mudslides, and there's always the potential for  earthquakes from one of the three fault lines that run through the area. 

Tsunamis resulting from earthquakes and volcanic activity  from one of Nicaragua's six active volcanoes are both ever-present threats. And  there is always the threat of fire. 

Despite the threat, the Nicaraguan Army remains prepared  for anything. 

"As a national army, we are ready to face and  respond to these natural disasters because of their frequency,"  Perezcassar said. "Our plan for emergency management allows military  commanders to organize the different risks they may face in their respective  territories, [giving] them the [ability] to utilize their available resources  and create their own plan of action, which becomes the basis for each  contingency plan." 

The visit also included a tour of the Regional Emergency  All-Climate Training Center (REACT) at Camp Williams, Wis., a training facility  which certifies emergency responders in a variety of catastrophic disaster  management techniques. 

"We wanted to show the REACT center to the  Nicaraguan delegation because they have a great interest in further developing  their own search and rescue unit," said Capt. Joe Davison, State  Partnership Program coordinator. "Perezcassar recently deployed to Haiti  with a platoon of search and rescue personnel and they saw some of the more  advanced equipment and techniques used by other search and rescue teams from  the U.S. They want to learn some of the advanced techniques that are taught at  the REACT center."

Davison said the goal is to eventually bring soldiers  from the Nicaraguan search and rescue unit to the REACT center to increase  their ability to respond to emergencies at home. 

The Nicaraguan search and rescue team deployed to Haiti  for approximately two months with 35 personnel. During that time, they are  credited with saving the lives of six Haitians. 

"In the area of disaster preparedness and response,  Nicaragua has a wealth of experience as they are vulnerable to many  environmental threats," said WEM Director Scott Legwold. 

During the upcoming 2011 Vigilant Guard exercise, which  is scheduled to simulate a major earthquake at the New Madrid seismic zone  affecting about 19 states in the midwestern, southern and eastern region, the  Wisconsin National Guard will respond to several localized emergencies. 

"We will be working with our Nicaraguan partners  prior to the exercise and sharing our contingency plans in a variety of  scenarios to learn from each other," Legwold said. "During the actual  exercise we are planning to have a group of Nicaraguan emergency management  officials present to observe the crisis planning and response phases. We  anticipate learning a lot from them in the area of disaster preparedness and  response." 

The Wisconsin National Guard and the Nicaraguan military  both have a very similar role in emergency management, supporting their  respective civilian emergency management agencies sharing the responsibility to  plan and respond to natural disasters and other emergencies that take place  within their respective borders. 

"Helping Nicaragua develop its capacity to respond to  natural disasters may be the most important aspect of our partnership,"  Davison said. "The world saw the different outcomes between Haiti, a  country that had very limited ability to self-respond in a major disaster,  versus Chile that took great measures to prepare for major disasters. We want  to make sure Wisconsin does everything it can to assist Nicaragua now in  preparing for natural disasters that they are sure to face in the future." 

"We appreciate the interest you have in our  country," Perezcassar said. "You're always there during our most  difficult situations and this visit is proof that Wisconsin has an interest in  sharing their experiences, so we can learn from them when we're affected by  natural disasters." 

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