Routine National Guard hazmat training in Minot not related to the coronavirus

MINOT, N.D. – If you happen to find yourself on the north end of Minot, you may see some people wearing protective suits. Don’t worry, it has nothing to do with the coronavirus outbreak.

In fact, it’s the 81st Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team training with the regional hazmat team. This training has been on the calendar for months.

The U.S. Army North has set up different scenarios and the civil support team has to go in and evaluate what’s going on.

The training is meant to ensure the public’s safety in the event there’s any chemical, biological or radiological release.

“The unique thing about these exercises is U.S. Army North plans them for us, but they don’t give us any details on them,” said LTC. Patrick Flanagan.

“We have a relatively young team, we have a lot of new soldiers on the team that are going through this for the first time so it’s to evaluate their skills in a training exercise because when they come back from their evaluation, it’s no longer training, it’s to ensure that we are capable of doing this.”

The 81st CST training will run through Thursday in Minot — and they want to remind everyone it has nothing to do with the coronavirus outbreak.