PORT TOWNSEND — Military convoys — albeit smaller ones than the massive Stryker Brigade that rolled through parts of Jefferson County in June — are once again hitting local roads.
This time, the units are part of an international force training at Indian Island, Point Wilson and Keystone as part of a coastal defense and harbor security exercise called Naval Coastal Warfare Seahawk ’03.
The Seahawk training operation has occurred in and around Port Townsend yearly since 1997.
It involves up to 800 troops including active U.S. Army, Army Reserve and Naval Reserve units.
Canadian navy and army personnel are also assisting in the training.
No big ships are scheduled to take part in the operation, Naval Coastal Warfare Group 1 spokesman Cmdr. Craig Tulip said Wednesday.
Residents may hear a minimal amount of gunfire during the drill as blanks, mostly from M-16 automatic rifles, are fired, Tulip said.
He said the amount of small-arms fire will be minimal.
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The rest of the story appears in Thursday’s Peninsula Daily News Jefferson County edition.
