Courtesy Photo | As the sun begins to set; Soldiers rig a 14,000-pound T-wall barrier to a crane before...... read more read more
By Sgt. Henry J. Bauer
35th Engineer's Brigade
BAGHDAD – There have been several great walls built throughout the world throughout history - The Great Wall of China and The Berlin Wall, to name a few.
The most notable and recent is the Great Wall of Sadr. This wall was constructed in one of the most hostile areas of Iraq known as Sadr City. This structure separates the districts of Tharwa to the north, and Jamilla to the south.
"This wall was constructed with force protection concrete T-wall structures that weigh between 12,000 to 14,000 pounds and stand 12 feet high by 5-feet wide," said Capt. Jason Mahfouz, from Lake Charles, La., who serves as the Operations Officer for the 769th Engineer Battalion from Baton Rouge, La., with Multi-National Division – Baghdad. "The wall consists of 3,126 T-wall structures covering a length of approximately 3.2 miles."
For the Soldiers of the 821st Horizontal Engineer Company, 769th Engine Battalion, 35th Engine Brigade, MND-B, from Summersville, W.Va., this mission was a demanding and tireless one to complete, said Mahfouz.
Day and night, these engineer Soldiers headed to the Jamilla neighborhood of the Sadr City District of Baghdad to emplace these T-wall barriers with the use of a crane and a Skytrak forklift. Living up to their combat engineer name, these Soldiers have come under heavy enemy fire, on a near daily basis, while performing this monumental mission of completing the wall. The enemy fire that these West Virginia Soldiers faced mostly consisted of small arms fire, rocket propelled grenades, sniper fire, grenades, and improvised explosive devices.
Al Quds street used to be filled with shops and markets up and down both sides. With the creation of this wall, this area will be used in that capacity once again.
Since beginning construction of the wall, there has been a reduction in attacks on the reconstruction effort throughout the Baghdad area.
The Special Group extremist's freedom of movement has diminished greatly due to the constrictive nature of the wall, according to Maj. Michelle Dean, a native of New Orleans, who serves as an intelligence officer for the 769th Eng. Bn, 35th Eng. Bde., MND-B. This barrier structure has had a positive effect on the reconstruction efforts in Sadr City south of the barrier.
The mission of emplacing these T-wall barriers may have seemed like a very simple task but may be quite difficult logistically if all the pieces are not in order, said Dean.
Soldiers hauled T-walls from a remote trans-load location to the wall emplacement with the use of Palletized Loading System trucks also known as a PLS. To make this process more combat effective, these PLS trucks traveled back and forth all day and night to deliver the barriers to the site. Once there, a Soldier from the 821st Horizontal Engineer Company removes the barriers one at a time from the PLS with the use of a Skytrak forklift vehicle. When the barrier is removed from the PLS, it is then transported to the front of the crane and placed on the ground where an infantry man is standing by to hook the barrier up to an awaiting hoist from a crane. At this point the crane operator from the 821st lifts up the 14,000 pound structure and swings it around with precise coordination and distinction to the end of the wall where the infantry man on the ground guides the barrier into the awaiting area to add to the now growing wall. This process was carried out every day and night until the wall was completed.
"It was with this collaborative team effort that this wall was a great success," said Lt. Col. Keith Waddell, a native of New Roads, La., who serves as the Battalion Commander of the 769th Eng. Bn., 35th Eng. Bde., MND-B. "As our Engineers continue to work effectively in this area, they have personally been witness and have participated in history in the making."
The Soldiers of the 821st Horizontal Engineer Company will continue to work hard to do their part in the monumental mission in the reconstruction of the greater Baghdad area, according to Sgt. 1st Class Mark Peters, from Jane Lew, W.Va., a platoon sergeant for the 821st Horizontal Engineer Company, "When it is too hard for everyone else, it is just right for us."
| Date Taken: | 05.09.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 05.30.2008 11:16 |
| Story ID: | 19946 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 663 |
| Downloads: | 230 |
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