Event:
July 4 celebrations on the Mall in Washington DC.

Deployed Members:
Two Communications Officers.

History:
Expected crowds of up to 500 thousand on the Capital Mall for the 4th of July celebrations triggered a request for additional manpower to assist public health efforts.  Two OH-5 Communications officers departed July 3 around 10 AM from Dayton Airport.  Upon arriving in Washington the two went to the OEP Warehouse and Emergency Operations Center to help with installation and packing of communications equipment.

The communications group also completed the installation of a satellite commuinications system as pictured above onto one of the new OEP vehicles.

On the morning of the 4th, the group converged early at a location near the Capital Mall to set up a temporary Management Support Team.

Phone lines, phones and fax systems were put into place followed then by radio systems.  Computer systems were then also set up using desktops and laptops. Wireless networking and printer sharing were then added to the mix by the techs.

A defective repeater antenna required replacement and new cable for it was also installed. Although temperatures in Washington climbed during the day to over 100 degrees, the work still needed to be done.  At least the communications guys had a good view of washington from the antenna site.

The MST personnel also were able to catch the music coming from the capital steps from their location as well as the fireworks near the Washington Monument as seen below.

The two Communications Officers returned early on the afternoon of July 5 after a good couple of days.

Links:
Washington Post