COMMAND SGT. MAJ. ROGER GOODWIN
Troop Command
Hawaii Army National Guard
Wheeler Army Airfield
Wahiawa, Hawaii
We were assigned as the rotational safety team for the 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team’s Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) rotation at Fort Johnson, Louisiana. I knew we would be busy mitigating risks associated with this type of large-scale training operation. We would be responsible for monitoring, responding and reporting mishaps for nine battalions. We worked closely with operation and garrison safety teams at JRTC on historical safety trends and mishaps from previous rotations, such as heat casualties, rail line-haul operations, live-fire exercises, aerial extractions, severe weather hazards, convoy movements, day/night/brownout conditions, military vehicle rollovers and container yard operations. However, one hazard caught us all by surprise.
The dense woodlands of west central Louisiana are home to many animals, so we provided the standard “critters” brief — watch out for snakes, spiders, etc. — and included it in the rotation tactical safety guidebook. But coyotes? Sure, they’re native to North America and can be found throughout the United States, but we never considered briefing how to defend yourself from a coyote attack because we’d never experienced anything like that during training. Little did we know that this rotation would make history for the number of animal attacks on Soldiers in a training environment.
The first attack happened in the early morning when a coyote bit a sleeping Soldier on the left arm. The Soldier pushed away the coyote, but he was bitten again before other Soldiers were able to scare off the animal. A local game warden was able to find a coyote with the aid of the platoon Raven Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (TUAS). The animal was sent for testing for rabies, and the results came back negative seven days later. In the meantime, however, the Soldier had to complete the rabies vaccination process.
The following morning, 12 other Soldiers were bitten by an unknown number of coyotes between the hours of 0100 and 0600. The Soldiers were either asleep, on guard duty in fighting positions or actively looking for the animals. Like the first victim, these Soldiers were transported to Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital for treatment and rabies vaccinations.
We interviewed all 13 Soldiers that were attacked, and three cases stood out due to their severity and uniqueness. In the first case, the Soldier was pulling security in the prone position while wearing night vision goggles. A coyote ambushed the Soldier from the rear, biting him on the ear and head. The second case involved a Soldier who was in an entrenchment, awake and coherent, when a coyote suddenly appeared. The animal’s defensive instinct took over, resulting in a bite to the Soldier’s abdomen. The third and most severe case was a frontal assault. The Soldier was asleep in his fighting position when he was awakened by a cold, wet sensation near his nose. That sensation was the coyote investigating the Soldier, who was bitten on the mouth.
We don’t know exactly what caused these attacks. Were the coyotes attracted to MRE trash, driven by hunger or protecting their territory or dens? Some common factors were that the attacks took place during the early morning hours, near the coyotes’ dens where their pups were housed and there was unfinished or open food nearby. Mitigation strategies set forth in the JRTC wildlife brief include enforcing proper sanitation standards regarding trash and open food at the battalion level. Mitigation efforts recommended at the operational level included increasing the game warden’s presence, performing a more in-depth survey of the area for predatory animals and prohibiting units from operating there.
In the end, we were able to complete the necessary coordination and training to ensure Soldier readiness and overall combat competency for all nine battalions. Unfortunately, 13 Soldiers took back home more than just valuable training and memories that will last a lifetime. They received battle scars from an unprovoked and unobserved enemy that, in some cases, will also last a lifetime. Through their misfortune, however, we were able to reshape our outlook on extraneous factors that could be experienced in “the box.”
FYI
According to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, coyote attacks are rare. However, a mated pair of coyotes will become very territorial and aggressively defend a range around the den site the pregnant female has chosen. Pups may be born any time between late March through May, and coyotes are very active during the summer when they’re raising their young.