Photo By Samuel Weldin | Wes Safarik (left), FLW area office resident engineer, and Brad Slone (right),...... read more read more
FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. – In the lush, rolling hills of Ozark country in south-central Missouri, lies Fort Leonard Wood. This thriving and historic installation, which evolved from a small basic training post more than 70 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence, trains more than 86,000 military and Department of the Army civilians each year at the many specialty schools located there. In the midst of the sprawling 62,000-acre installation lies an office comprised of 17 personnel who aid in the infrastructure and future success of the base – the Fort Leonard Wood Area Office of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District.
Wes Safarik, the area office resident engineer, has spent the last 17 years working at the area office. He has seen many projects start and end. From initial concept and design, to groundbreaking, to ribbon cutting completion ceremonies -- Wes and company have quite a well-rounded perspective to tackle the many military construction projects tasked to them in support of the U.S. Army mission.
“I have been a part of approximately 150 projects, registering about $500 million in contract value, during my career here at Fort Leonard Wood,” Safarik said. “The FLW-South office is a versatile group and has taken on a variety of projects for several customers outside of our national defense customer, always attuned to the customer’s needs and striving to maximize the projects to the customer’s benefit. We have 17 people with a combined 190 years with USACE and easily over 225 years of construction experience.”
When asked about which project he was most fond of, Safarik responded, “the Big Piney Weir Project last year.” This particular project’s goal was to repair a roughly 81-year-old weir (a low dam built across a river to raise water levels upstream) in the Big Piney River. At Fort Leonard Wood, the weir accomplishes that, but serves a special purpose to the military community living and working on the installation as it pools the water required for daily water intake and supply.
“Working in a smaller river with such a propensity to flood rapidly, and to an extreme level, during the spring presented some unique challenges,” said Safarik. “A flooding event put the project at risk for failure in the span of just a few days, however, the ability of all the interested parties, to include the contractor, to come together and make decisions that turned the project from a potential failure to a successful completion in two months was an unprecedented career experience for me.”
Currently, the area office has been tasked with the renovation, repair and upgrade of several facilities on the installation, tallying approximately $40 million of the $108 million of construction currently underway on post.
The largest of the projects being two barracks buildings, originally constructed in the 1980s, used for Advanced Individual Training (AIT). AIT is the next step after Basic Combat Training, where soldiers learn the technical skills and discipline required to perform their designated job. This renovation and upgrade will support the U.S. Army Warfighter and contribute directly to our nation’s defense readiness mission.
“Typically, these kinds of smaller projects don’t get as much of a spotlight as some of the other “mega” projects going on within the district,” said Safarik. “But they are definitely important to the mission of the installation and the United States, and that gives me pride.”
Fort Leonard Wood is a major training base for the U.S. Army and is home to the U.S. Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence, which encompasses several mission essential schools and training facilities like the U.S. Army Engineer School, U.S. Army Military Police School and the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear School.
The installation plays a crucial role in preparing soldiers for deployment and maintaining maximum operational readiness -- The Kansas City District’s Fort Leonard Wood Area Office ensures the local infrastructure will be prepared to handle that critical mission.
| Date Taken: | 09.23.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 09.23.2024 14:44 |
| Story ID: | 481544 |
| Location: | MISSOURI, US |
| Web Views: | 91 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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