Civil Support Team
Active duty National Guard team made up of
Air Force and
Army Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (
NBC) weapons specialists whose job it is to provide support to state and local
first responders in the event of a domestic NBC event.
Originally known as RAID teams, the name was changed because, hell, it's scary enough when guys in blue bio-hazard suits jump out of black helicopters, and it's so much better when they're there to SUPPORT you rather than RAID you. Originally, one team was planned for each FEMA region, but Congress, post 9/11 has figured each state could probaly use one. These are national guard units and, as such, fall under the control of the governor.
The US Army Chemical Corps tries their best to establish some sort of standard equipment, training, and techniques, but hasn't been all that exceptionally successful. The National Guard is, at its core, a good old boy network, and in a lot of states, the officers leading these units are just random Army officers who knew the right guy to land the job rather than experienced Chemical Officers who have the training and experience with NBC to merit such an assignment. Yee ha! Welcome to the Nashunaaaal Guard!
Also, Central Standard Time.