WVARNG Soldiers, WV State Police participate in EOD Raven's Challenge

On May 23-25 at Camp Dawson in Kingwood, W.Va., Soldiers from the West Virginia Army National Guard’s 753rd Explosive Ordinance participated alongside the West Virginia State Police Bomb Squad in the Raven’s Challenge, the world’s largest training event for military and police EOD/IED units and emergency management personnel.

The three-day event, which is held in four locations annually, invites military, both active and reserve components, and their local, state and federal law enforcement and agency counterparts to participate in the exercise that focuses on training for real-world scenarios.

“It encompasses the full-spectrum of operations from military, public safety, communications, command and control and it’s the only one that fully exercises these capabilities across the whole spectrum,” said John V. Simpson, Raven’s Challenge Program Manager.