SALISBURY — Beginning Friday, Army Special Forces will conduct its Robin Sage training exercise in Rowan County and 18 other N.C. counties.

Robin Sage is the final test for candidates in the Special Forces Qualification Course at the Army’s John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg. The candidates and volunteers stage the training missions while they live in civilian areas.

According to Janice Burton, a public affairs officer at the Special Warfare Center, the training will be in rural areas and will be marked with “training in session” signs.

Residents may hear blank gunfire and see occasional fire. The Robin Sage exercises have been planned with county officials. Burton recommended that if residents have concerns, “the best thing to do is to call the police department.”

Robin Sage, which began in 1974, is the final stage of a year’s training for students to become Special Forces soldiers. It offers real-world training by placing the candidates in “an environment of political instability characterized by armed conflict” with role players who act as “realistic opposing forces and guerrilla freedom fighters.”

Robin Sage will continue until Aug. 17. The next two-week training will begin Sept. 29. There are six training sessions a year.

In addition to Rowan, counties affected are Alamance, Anson, Cabarrus, Chatham, Cumberland, Davidson, Davie, Guilford, Hoke, Lee, Montgomery, Moore, Randolph, Richmond, Robeson, Scotland, Stanly and Union.