Having to enter a building not knowing what kind of enemy is waiting on the other side is a frightening and dangerous prospect for soldiers.

To better hone these skills, soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, spent two days at a shoot house on Joint Base Lewis-McChord Feb. 10-11 where they practiced urban combat while fighting enemies in a tight space.

The training took place inside a simulated house where observers could watch the action in real time. The soldiers entered the house and moved from room to room clearing them of enemies while avoiding injuring civilians.

"The enemy is right in your face in a lot of scenarios," said Spc. Ross Sagadraca, a Honolulu native and team leader with 2nd Bn., 3rd Inf. Regt. "We deal with a lot of civilians in the urban environment, so we have to take that into account."

The soldiers began the training by doing "dry" runs where they did not fire any rounds. They then ran the training using blank rounds, which simulate the loud noise of a round firing and finally moved into live rounds.

Many of the soldiers taking part in this training have never deployed, making this a prime opportunity to learn from those who have gone overseas.

"A lot of them just got into the Army," Sagadraca said. "We just got a lot of new guys. Training them up and getting them on point is a key task in this job."

For Sagadraca, this was a chance to pass on the skills that he acquired during his deployments.

"A lot of us have been oversees and are used to this sort of stuff," he said. "Passing down that knowledge is fundamental."

An especially important part of the training was practicing how to safely work as a group while in such tight quarters.

"Everyone has a specific job on each team and certain sectors they must cover," said Staff Sgt. Jeff Dotzler, a Lompoc, Calif., native and squad leader. "It's basically just perfecting our techniques making sure we know how to flow in and out of these buildings."

Dotzler said that there is the potential for fratricide if the soldiers aren't aware of where their teammates are at any given moment while inside a building.

For Dotzler, this training has shown him just how much his team can improve.

"My squad improves daily," he continued. "All my guys except for my team leaders are straight out of basic. Every day they are learning something new."

These soldiers will continue to hone their skills in the coming months as they take part in increasingly difficult training at both Yakima Training Center, Washington, and at the National Training Center, California.

Staff Sgt. Justin Naylor is with the 3-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs.