Photo By Staff Sgt. Breanne Donnell | U.S. Army Soldiers with the South Dakota Army National Guard’s 842nd Engineer...... read more read more
Subscribe
The South Dakota Army National Guard’s 155th Engineer Company and 842nd Engineer Company teamed up with the Sanford Underground Research Facility to improve roads and buildings at the site during the Golden Coyote training exercise, June 15.
842nd (horizontal engineers) who specialize in heavy equipment operation, focused on road construction and maintenance. The 155th (vertical engineers) worked on structural improvement projects in and around buildings.
The 842nd worked to improve road access and control storm water flow to prevent road erosion. Soldiers developed roads, hauled gravel and rock, dug ditches and worked on culverts to maintain the road. The 155th poured concrete, removed and replaced old electrical wires from buildings that were used during the 1800s Homestake mining period.
The 842nd’s projects focused on water flow. Creating a waterfall effect with pooling areas slows water and prevents road washout. The culverts and ditches that were built will help direct and control water runoff and maintain the roads they were improving.
“It is a lot of fun and a lot of work,” said Spc. Isaac Madden, 842nd equipment operator. “I get time in the equipment so I’m learning and getting more experienced.”
Projects like these give new unit members experience on the equipment and opportunities for teaching that aren’t a normal part of weekend drill. The Golden Coyote training exercise is one of the premier training venues for National Guard, Reserve and active duty military, providing relevant training opportunities.
The 155th unit is comprised of carpenters, plumbers and electricians. They teamed with Sanford Lab on remodel and reconstruction projects to improve buildings with new electrical wiring, sheet rock and concrete. A priority project has been the conversion of a building to an office for the SURF staff.
“It’s been really nice working with the Sanford Lab,” said Sgt. Joshua Shoop, 155th En. Co. “Being able to concentrate on training Soldiers and getting the value of the training has been key.”
Michele Baumann, contract specialist with the SURF, works closely with the units to coordinate and plan the projects. This is the second year the units have been there to improve the grounds.
“It’s been fantastic working with the National Guard,” said Baumann. “The projects are bigger and better this year, we look forward to working together for years to come.”
Baumann said the military presence in the community is very welcome and it’s eye-opening for the public to see the Guard doing projects in the community. This is one of many engineer projects and humanitarian service missions completed during the Golden Coyote.
| Date Taken: | 06.17.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 06.17.2018 10:00 |
| Story ID: | 281270 |
| Location: | RAPID CITY, SOUTH DAKOTA, US |
| Web Views: | 73 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Sanford Lab teams with SD Guard on improvement projects, by SSG Breanne Donnell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
