Arnold Native, Former Marine Trains for Disaster Relief in a Black Hawk

Members of the Illinois Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 106th Aviation Regiment (1-106th) out of Decatur, Ill., traveled to Wisconsin with a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters to conduct training, including Arnold native Sgt. Charles L. Venegoni.

The group participated in the annual joint service and multinational disaster response exercise that is called the ‘Patriot’, in the armed forces.

Patriot exercise simulates the occurrence of natural disasters, according to a military article. The exercise is comprised of three tornadoes and several terrorists attack scenarios. It is designed to overwhelm the first responder teams prompting a National Guard emergency response.

The unit also trains new pilots and crew as well as conducts missions to support other units outside of Patriot.

One of the aircrafts used for training is the Black Hawk helicopter. Venegoni, who is a firefighter and former Marine is now a crew chief with Company A, and is using this training to get familiar with the Black Hawk.

Click here to find out what the Arnold man does in this capacity as it pertains to natural disasters on U.S. soil.