Wednesday, Jun. 29, 2011

TRADOC safety message

Independence Day is a time to celebrate the birth of our great Nation. It is also an opportunity for Family and friends to gather to enjoy the holiday weekend. This past Memorial Day weekend was marked by tragedy with the accidental drowning deaths of two TRADOC Soldiers. I need your help to prevent further tragedies this Independence Day weekend.

This year’s Army safety theme, “What Have You Done to Save a Life Today?” presents a great opportunity for TRADOC leaders to engage with Soldiers, civilian employees, Family members, and the community to reinforce our safety culture. I encourage you to stay focused and engage your subordinate commanders and leaders in setting and maintaining high safety standards. Leaders, supervisors, and managers must ensure no Soldier or civilian employee departs for the Independence Day holiday weekend without receiving a thorough safety briefing covering the inherent dangers of holiday travel and recreational activities such as boating, swimming, skiing, and most importantly the risk of mixing alcohol consumption with any of these activities.

I recommend the use of TRADOC’s latest interactive training video, “Off Duty, On Guard” as an effective tool to raise safety awareness prior to the holiday. The video is available on the TRADOC public Web site at www.tradoc.army.mil/offdutyonguard.

The same leader involvement that will get us safely through this holiday weekend will also get us through the risks and hazards we will face during the remainder of the summer months. Safety and composite risk management integration are important keys to our training successes.

The standards we set and demonstrate will also be carried into the Operational Force by the Soldiers we train.

I hope you all enjoy a well-deserved holiday. We need you to return safely to carry on the vital mission entrusted to us: to train America’s Army. Have a safe and enjoyable Independence Day weekend.

Safety starts here!

-- Gen. Robert W. Cone TRADOC commander