Yakima National Guard unit will be heading for Iraq

[darrels joy]

Yakima National Guard unit will be heading for Iraq
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

A chemical warfare unit based in Yakima will begin active duty in a month, the Washington National Guard announced Tuesday.

The news release said the 792nd Chemical Company, with more than 150 personnel, would provide security, stabilization and other support for military units due to rotate back to the United States from Iraq.

It was not clear from the news release whether the 792nd would be detecting nuclear, biological and chemical threats, the duty for which the soldiers are trained.

The 792nd, which includes detachments in Spokane and Bremerton, will be on active duty for approximately 18 months. That includes six months of training in Fort Lewis and 12 months in Iraq, according to the news release.

On July 31, the National Guard will hold a community sendoff ceremony for the unit. The news release did not give a schedule for that event, and military officials in Olympia could not be reached.

The 792nd was formed in September 2001, according to the news release.

The 792nd's parent unit is the 420th Chemical Battallion, also based in Yakima. The other companies of the 420th are based in Grandview and Vancouver.

The 420th was formed as a result of lessons learned from Desert Storm, when thousands of U.S. troops were exposed to low levels of sarin, a nerve-damaging gas, according to a 2001 article about the battalion in the Yakima Herald-Republic.

Units of the 420th are trained to wash down military vehicles and care for protective exposure gear issued to field troops.
______________________________
More young people, some that I've known since grade school, headed to the sandbox.
Joy