SPARTA, IL (10/16/2017) (readMedia)

WHO:

• Illinois Army National Guard's 661st Engineer Detachment Firefighting Team based in Sparta, Illinois.

WHAT:

• A mobilization ceremony is scheduled for a team of Soldiers who will deploy to Iraq.

WHEN/WHERE:

• Oct. 18 at 11 a.m.

• Sparta Fire Station, 1803 Hillcrest Drive; Sparta, Illinois.

WHY:

• The unit will train at Fort Bliss, Texas, for a brief time before deploying for Iraq.

• The 661st will be responsible for aircraft rescue firefighting operations and structural firefighting operations in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.

• This is the first deployment for this detachment.

• This is the first Iraq deployment for an Illinois Army National Guard unit since 2011-2012.

• The unit is expected to be mobilized for approximately 10 months, returning during summer 2018.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• For more information, contact the Illinois National Guard Public Affairs Office at ng.il.ilarng.list.staff-pao@mail.mil or 217-761-3569

Become our Facebook Fan!

www.facebook.com/illinoisnationalguard

-30-

Support the River Cities' Reader

Get 12 Reader issues mailed monthly for $48/year.

Old School Subscription for Your Support

Get the printed Reader edition mailed to you (or anyone you want) first-class for 12 months for $48.
$24 goes to postage and handling, $24 goes to keeping the doors open!

Click this link to Old School Subscribe now.



Help Keep the Reader Alive and Free Since '93!

 

"We're the River Cities' Reader, and we've kept the Quad Cities' only independently owned newspaper alive and free since 1993.

So please help the Reader keep going with your one-time, monthly, or annual support. With your financial support the Reader can continue providing uncensored, non-scripted, and independent journalism alongside the Quad Cities' area's most comprehensive cultural coverage." - Todd McGreevy, Publisher