Whose Name We Share

83 Operation COVID Assist The Coronavirus pandemic swept through the world at an alarming rate in the closing days of 2019. Originating in Wuhan, China the virus would begin to spread worldwide throughout the start of 2020. Australia recorded its first case on the 25 th January 2020 and this would eventually trigger the government’s response to defend the economy, support the people and increase supply to the healthcare industry. In the initial days of the virus’s arrival in Australia there was little difference to the ordinary life, but we had already seen many examples of what other world leaders had done well and more importantly what they had not. It was a strange time for the Army as the beginning weeks of February started to show more and more confirmed cases. Eventually, the government decided to take drastic action in reducing the spread of the virus by enforcing social distancing, implementing self-quarantine procedures and most notably, urging people to work from home wherever possible. Prime Minister Scott Morrison handled the economic defence, whilst the Health Minister continued to give advice day after day on the best actions to take to remain safe. The Prime Minister, based on the Health Minister’s advice, set down a list of rules and left the states and territories the freedom to decide how best to handle their response. Most of his rulings were heeded by the state leaders, including the advice to reduce public gatherings down to 10. This meant that a majority of large organisations – including the Army - would have to work from home along with the rest of the country, which was a strange and bewildering thing. The 103 rd Battery continued training from home through the use of apps such as Signal and Google Classroom. Whilst at home the Battery would report in at 0730 to enforce a normal routine, conduct personal fitness (consistent with the at-home training plan) and then be given or sent artillery-related references to study before completing at test at the end of every day. Other training included ethics and morality, battle reviews on Long Tan, Hamel and even, on a few occasions, analysing past VC’s actions. The situation in the Northern Territory was not one to be concerned about, but in the whole of Australia, especially areas with high population density, the situation deteriorated day by day. In response, the Chief of Army would eventually put out a general order to all units to launch Operation Covid Assist. Australian Army would be required to lend assistance to local police, health workers and the community. The Army’s call for action required multiple units to respond. One such unit was the 8 th /12 th Regiment and by extension the 103 rd Battery. OP COVID ASSIST began on the 1 st of April 2020 and saw members of the 103 rd Battery lend assistance to local police. The Battery would undertake a multitude of tasks, including self-quarantine compliance checks with locals, manning command posts to maintain contact with multiple callsigns and enforcing travel restrictions in various locations. For the most part, the 103 rd Battery spent their time at RAAF Tindal, just outside of Katherine in the Northern Territory. It was here they stayed whilst they slowly rotated through manning the Stuart highway and working with the