Risk Management Magazine

It was a typical summer night at the Joint Readiness Training Center — hot and humid. A unit was conducting an exercise that simulated an assault on a town and included mounted and dismounted Soldiers. Shortly after the exercise began, the light infantry dismounted from a truck about one kilometer from the objective and linked up with some M1 tanks.

Never have I experienced anything as frightening as being a heat casualty. I will always remember the way my body felt and the emotions that were running through my mind when I succumbed to heat exhaustion and dehydration.

Despite effective techniques to prevent heat-related medical conditions, military personnel continue to experience severe and sometimes fatal life-threatening heat-related illnesses during both training activities and combat.