National Guard Civil Suppport Teams from across the northeast will be training in Capital Region next week.

Civil Support Team training runs from June 9 to 12 and will include locations in Albany, Saratoga Springs and Lake George

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Members of the New York National Guard's 2nd Civil Support Team conducting a training mission.

LATHAM, NY (06/06/2025) (readMedia)-- Over 120 National Guard personnel will be conducting drills simulating multi-agency search operations for chemical, biological and radiological weapons in the Capital Region from June 9 to 12.

The exercise will involve National Guard Civil Support Teams from Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont and New Jersey, as well as those from New York's 2nd Civil Support Team and 24th Civil Support Team.

Civil Support Teams, shorthand for Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team, are National Guard units whose members are trained to identify hazardous materials including the presence of chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear weapons, and to advise and assist local, state, and federal authorities in consequence management.

Exercise events will take place at the Port of Albany, along the Hudson River, the Palace Theater, on board the USS Slater Museum ship, Saratoga Spa State Park and Performing Arts Center, and Lake George Islands State Park.

The drills are being hosted by the New York National Guard's 2nd Civil Support Team, which is based at Stratton Air National Guard Base in Scotia.

The New York National Guard's 24th Civil Support Team is based in Fort Hamilton, Brooklyn, and will be both participants and exercise controllers during the operation.

"We are excited to host the third consecutive multi-CST exercise in the northeast response region, said Lt. Col. John E. Giroux II, the commander of the 2nd Civil Support Team.

"Our team, which includes the tremendous support of our local, state, and federal partners, has planned and coordinated a comprehensive training scenario that will not only test individual team competencies, but allow us to hone our regional response plans, stress our command-and-control procedures, and improve our multi-agency interoperability," he added.

The exercise will also involve local law enforcement entities, the New York State Police and New York State Parks Police, and the New York State Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Guard Bureau will also be involved.