The 2nd Chemical Battalion is a United States Army chemical unit stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, United States, and is part of the 48th Chemical Brigade. The battalion can trace its lineage from the 30th Engineer Regiment (Gas and Flame) and has served in World War I, World War II, Korean War, Operation Desert Storm, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 2nd Chemical Battalion currently (June 2019) consists of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company (Hellfire), 68th Chemical Company (Responders) and 181st Chemical Company (Double Dragons) at Fort Hood, Texas, the 172nd Chemical Company (Gladiators) at Fort Riley, Kansas and the 63rd Chemical Company (Dragon Masters) at Fort Campbell, Kentucky/Tennessee. The unit is sometimes incorrectly referred to as the "2D CBRN Battalion" where CBRN stands for Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear. However the correct designation for the unit is "2D Chemical Battalion (CBRN)." History Formation Shortly after the U.S. entered World War I, the general staff of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) decided to establish a Gas Service, part of which would be an offensive gas regiment. Born out of this decision was War Department General Order 108, dated 15 August 1917, which authorized and established an offensive gas unit designated as the 30th Engineer Regiment (Gas and Flame.) Shortly thereafter, General Order 31 from the General Headquarters of the AEF officially activated the Gas Service Section with Colonel Amos Fries in command. Because its lineage traces directly back to the 30th Engineers, this timeline means that not only is the 2D Chemical Battalion the first and oldest unit in the Chemical Corps, but it is also older than the Chemical Corps itself. On 30 August 1917 Captain Earl J. Atkisson was assigned the task of raising and training the fledgling gas regiment which was stationed at Camp American University, Washington, D.C. Atkisson set out acquiring officers, enlisted men, equipment and information. Beginning on 19 October 1917, the influx of enlisted personnel into the regiment was "near continuous". Early on the 30th Engineer Regiment became known as the "Hell Fire Battalion", and its soldiers as the "Hell Fire Boys". A 15 November 1917 story in the Baltimore Evening Star stated: If His Satanic Majesty happened to drop around at the American University training camp to-day, he would see the "Hell Fire Battalion" at work and might blush with envy. On the War Department records the battalion is known as the "Gas and