Army Ranger Training: Safety Improvements Need to Be Institutionalized
NSIAD-97-29
Published: Jan 02, 1997. Publicly Released: Jan 02, 1997.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Army's investigation of the February 1995 accident in which four Army Ranger Training Brigade students died while training in a Florida swamp, focusing on the: (1) status of all of the Army's corrective actions; (2) adequacy of Army oversight to ensure that the corrective actions instituted after the accident will be sustained in the future; (3) Army's progress in implementing the Fiscal Year 1996 National Defense Authorization Act's mandate to increase Brigade staffing to 90 percent of requirements; and (4) Army's progress in establishing safety cell organizations at the Brigade.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of the Army | The Secretary of the Army should direct that the Ranger Training Brigade identify critical training safety controls at each training location. |
The Ranger Training Brigade has identified the critical safety controls to the chain of command and continues to refine and codify them in standard operating procedures.
|
| Department of the Army | The Secretary of the Army should ensure that Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC), the Army Infantry Center, Fort Benning safety office, and Ranger Training Brigade conduct periodic inspections to determine compliance with the identified safety controls. |
The Secretary of the Army directed that the Ranger Training Brigade chain of command, including the Training and Doctrine Command and the Army Infantry Center, and external organizations, such as the Inspector General, conduct periodic inspections of the Brigade's compliance with key safety controls.
|
| Department of the Army | The Secretary of the Army should direct that inspections of critical safety controls be made periodically by organizations outside the chain of command such as the Army Inspector General. |
The Secretary of the Army directed that the Ranger Training Brigade chain of command, including the Training and Doctrine Command and the Army Infantry Center, and external organizations, such as the Inspector General, conduct periodic inspections of the Brigade's compliance with key safety controls.
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Full Report
Topics
Accident preventionArmy personnelEmergency preparednessInspectionInvestigations by federal agenciesMilitary trainingOccupational safetyPersonnel managementSafety regulationSafety standardsEvacuation procedures