MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER, TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. -- When service members are wounded in combat, the immediate actions taken by others in efforts to save that person’s life can be the deciding factor between life and death.

 U.S. Marines from Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, based out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., sharpened these immediate action life-saving skills during Casualty Assistance Training March 5, at Combat Center Range 215. .

 The Marines were trained how to calm and stabilize wounded victims during this lane training package, which is included in Mojave Viper, a monthlong pre-deployment training evolution.

 The training is meant to be as real as possible.

 “We contract professional makeup artists, amputee actors and pyrotechnic personnel to make the training seem as real as we can,” said Chief Petty Officer John Pellior, lead medical instructor, Tactical Training Exercise Control Group, Training Command. “We also use a lot of fake blood to add a shock value to the training.

 “We provide realistic-looking personnel for the Marines to demonstrate their medical knowledge on,” added Pellior, a Columbus, Ohio native. “Practicing medical skills on a plastic dummy missing a leg is totally different than working on a real person who is missing his leg or arm. This adds the physiological aspect of a screaming person who builds stress to the situation. Marines tend to take the training more seriously this way.”

 Pellior said he has seen a lot of guys that have experienced these situations in combat have flashbacks. He has seen guys pass out, vomit and break down mentally.

 “That’s why we do this training here,” he added. “So when they are deployed, they won’t hesitate to react.”

 The training has proven to be useful in combat.

 “I was on a mobile patrol Oct. 24, 2006, and as we were traveling down a road we were hit by an IED [Improvised Explosive Device],” said Cpl. Christopher Krepps, squad leader, Echo Company, 2/2, and Gaylord, Mich., native. “A Marine riding in the vehicle that was hit lost one of his legs from the knee down and his other foot was attached only by his Achilles tendon.”

 Krepps applied a tunicate on the victim to stop the bleeding. Then he noticed the victim’s jaw was broken, so he performed a modified jaw thrust, which allowed him to breathe.

 Training for casualty assistance has evolved over the years, said Pellior.

 “In the past, most training was done in the class room setting with limited equipment,” continued Pellior. “Medical training was usually an afterthought. Now it is incorporated into every aspect of present day training.

 “The Marine Corps has come along way with medical training,” he added. “Now, there is a renewed use of Combat Life Savers training, the implementation of Tactical Combat Casualty Care training, Combat Trauma Management and various contracted medical courses available to Marines and Navy Corpsman.”

 The Marines and Sailors with 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment are scheduled to deploy in April and will benefit from this training, added Pellior.

 “This training will definitely help us in high-stress casualty situations and we will keep it fresh in our minds,” said Krepps.