SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii -- One by one Soldiers ground their gear and step to the edge of the pool; many of them will jump in to be submerged and surrounded by their biggest fear.
As the night rain fall turns into a mist and the sun begins to rise over the mountains; Soldiers, assigned to Company A, 225th Brigade Support Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, participate in water survival training at Richardson Swimming Pool, here, on Schofield Barracks.
"Soldiers can find themselves in a very sticky situation and water survival is one of those perishable skills that we as the Army fail to incorporate as an annual requirement," said 1st Sgt. Darryl Dotson, the senior enlisted advisor for A Co., 225th BSB. "Accomplishing their fear is the most important and will help Soldiers survive in the event they find themselves in a real world situation."
According to Dotson, this training is vital in making his company a combat ready team for the Warrior Brigade and throughout the Pacific Command area of responsibility.
"The Soldiers who completed the training today will be ready for any operation that will be around or near water," he said. They will have the skills to survive in water-based off the training they received today.
The water survival training was instructed by Marine water survival instructors, assigned to 3rd Marine Corps Regiment, from Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay.
According to Sgt. Thomas Adams, a satellite operator and one of the Marine water survival instructors, this training provides a good foundation for a lot of the Soldiers.
"The training was provided by the Marines; we were required to swim 25 meters using different swimming techniques of our choosing, tread water for 10 minutes using either the doggy paddle, standing or on our back, and finally we had to jump from the high dive platform and swim back to the deck area," said Dotson.
For one Soldier, this training was a step above regular grind of physical fitness training he conduct on a regular basis.
"This was pretty demanding," Spc. Roberto Oliver, a petroleum supply specialist and a native of Ponce, Puerto Rico. "Trying to stay in a pool and tread water for five minutes, then getting out of the pool to conduct down and ups, then swimming 25 meters and getting out and doing 15 push-ups, then swimming back 25 meters was really challenging. I wish there were more realistic training from week to week like this and I cannot wait until the next level of training with the Marines."
As the training concluded the Soldiers were able to build a foundation to overcome their fear of water.
"Watching my Soldiers overcome their fear of water is a big accomplishment," said Dotson. "They attempted and completed all phases of the training; while going above and beyond all expectations."