The 162nd Fighter Wing received a new piece of emergency equipment Nov. 1 – a Mobile Emergency Operations Center, or MEOC – to act as an incident command post in the event of emergencies or special events.
“The MEOC stands ready as a state or region asset for incidents such as natural disasters, aircraft mishaps, terrorism, special events, Domestic Operations, U.S. Northern Command taskings as well as Department of Defense support,” said Senior Master Sgt. Brett Heck, 162nd Fighter Wing emergency management superintendent.
Tucson is the first in its region to receive this piece of equipment. “Right now there are currently nine of these across the Air National Guard,” said Mr. Brian Deckle, president of the MEOC manufacturer.
The MEOC is a 36-foot semitrailer filled with the essential items to temporarily house up to 13 personnel. The unit acts as a base command or incident command post for communication, control and equipment in an emergency incident or special event.
The MEOC has numerous radio and information technology systems inside that provide interoperable communications and incident management functionality to a multi-jurisdictional tactical environment.
“This particular model is divided into two main sections,” said Heck “The front area supports communications which are set up with six workstations, large screen televisions and high tech cameras.”
The rear area contains a conference room, which can support up to seven personnel and is used for planning and operations. Once on-scene, MEOC personnel will assist in determining needs, creating a communications plan, deploying and operating equipment necessary to meet the planning objectives.
“The MEOC enables our emergency management professionals to gain ready access and proximity staging for integrated incident command. It truly epitomizes the capacity of the Air National Guard to meet the challenges presented in a Domestic Operations or emergency situation,” said Col. Garry Beauregard, 162nd Fighter Wing Mission Support Group Commander.
