PANAMA PACIFICO AIRPORT, Panama –
Members of Joint Task Force-Bravo led a two-day tabletop exercise with emergency response personnel in Panama at the Sistema Nacional de Protección Civil (SINAPROC) headquarters, located at the Regional Logistics Center for Humanitarian Assistance (CLRAH), Panama Pacifico Airport Complex, June 25-26, 2025.
According to their mission statement, SINAPROC is the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA or “FEMA-equivalent”) organization responsible for the planning, investigation, direction, supervision and organization of policies and actions towards the prevention of material and psychosocial risks related to natural and complex disasters.
“SINAPROC collects real-time data from provinces throughout Panama to include risk assessments, extent of damage and images, to forecast and determine aid needed in the event of a natural disaster,” said José Marrone, director, National Emergency Operations Center, SINAPROC.
SINAPROC storage facilities store food, personal hygiene kits, kitchen items, mattresses and baby items for 3,000 to 5,000 people for up to one week. In addition to humanitarian relief items, they provide search, rescue and recovery of personnel and research vulnerable areas through engineer assessments providing prevention and mitigation support.
Jaguar Sentinel includes a team of crisis management personnel from JTF-Bravo who travel to emergency operations centers throughout Central America, sharing best practices in emergency response efforts and assessing partner nation capabilities in responding to disasters. Also in attendance were Civil Affairs Soldiers based in Panama, members of the Missouri National Guard, embassy liaisons, SOUTHCOM J7/9-2 Partner Integration Division (PID), pilots from USNS Comfort, and U.S. Coast Guard partners.
The two-day exercise began with capability briefings from SINAPROC, the Panama Red Cross and organization subject matter experts from JTF-Bravo to include engineers, medical, aviation, logistics and public affairs. This is the first iteration of Jaguar Sentinel to take place in conjunction with U.S. Navy Southern Command’s Continuing Promise mission supporting the humanitarian and disaster relief line of effort increasing cross-command coordination and efficiency with U.S. Southern Command forces.
“Understanding where everyone is coming from and their capabilities sets us up to collectively respond should a natural disaster happen in the region,” shared Maj. Frank Glutting, deputy director, Civil-Military Operations (J9), JTF-Bravo.
A major flooding response practical exercise took place on the second day where members broke into groups to address questions pertaining to the exercise scenario.
Groups were asked to prioritize their response efforts based on all provided scenario information and identify limitations. They discussed important topics like the national alert process, how SINAPROC is activated in the event of a disaster, where aid warehouses are located, and reasonable response times. They also discussed how to request the support of JTF-Bravo through the U.S. Embassy.
“The agencies who attend these exercises don’t often interact to train and practice together which can lead to confusion on responsibilities or not fully understanding one another’s resources and capacity to respond during a crisis,” said Glutting. “Jaguar Sentinel helps bridge operational and knowledge gaps which hopefully generates recurring cross-collaboration exercises and information sharing.”
Jaguar Sentinel takes place monthly in various countries in Central America, most recently visiting the Dominican Republic for the first time. Each scenario presents real environmental concerns and challenges in the country to provide valuable information across a wide range of experts.
“These exercises are important for JTF-Bravo personnel and our host country emergency responders for several reasons such as establishing and maintaining working relationships with regional partners and learning from each other,” said Lt. Col. Achim Biller, Director, Civil-Military Operations (J9), JTF-Bravo. “Secondary benefits include enabling our key personnel from across JTF-Bravo to have these face-to-face connections and conversations with our partners since there is so much turnover for us, prior to an incident occurring,” he concluded.
“It was great to have our Joint Task Force-Bravo partners visiting us in Panama for Jaguar Sentinel,” expressed Marrone. “This exercise strengthens diplomatic relations and fosters cooperation. We’ve enjoyed learning from each other’s specific experiences and challenges enhancing our overall disaster management capabilities.”
With over 40 years of service, JTF-Bravo stands as the longest running U.S. military task force in the region. Our continued presence underscores the deep, enduring friendship and partnership between the U.S. and Central America, reinforcing our commitment to regional security and cooperation.