Photo By Maj. Alan Brown | Sgt. 1st Class Michael Tanner, of Johnson City, Tenn., and Staff Sgt Jason Staff, of...... read more read more
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CONTINGENCY OPERATING STATION GARRY OWEN, Iraq -- During an age when contractors provide a majority of support and sustainment functions on bases throughout Iraq, Soldiers seldom have to worry about fixing the A/C in their living quarters, ensuring the latrines are in working order or making force protection improvements around the base. However, at COS Garry Owen in Maysan Province, Soldiers power still reigns supreme.
Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division conduct the daily missions that enable the rest of the Soldiers and civilians at COS Garry Owen to live and work in a safe and comfortable environment.
The Soldiers of the Fighting Eagle battalion are responsible for many critical tasks and functions often handled by civilian contractors at other bases in Iraq. Given the remote location of COS Garry Owen, contractor support is much harder to come by, said Capt. Bob Stone, commander, Headquarters Headquarters Company, 1st Bn., 8th Inf. Reg.
Responsible for the Mayor’s cell for all of COS Garry Owen, the Soldiers of HHC, 1st Bn., 8th Inf. Reg. are responsible for everything from tent maintenance, air conditioner repair and replacement, plumbing and electrical maintenance, and latrine upkeep.
Stone likens his unit’s job as running a hotel for 1200 people, as his team keeps records of who lives in what areas and provides services for all of the “guests.”
Spc. Tim Goins, of Detroit, receives and processes maintenance work orders, ensuring the right person gets assigned to fix whatever problem may arise, whether it is a broken A/C unit, a plumbing glitch in a shower trailer or an electrical problem in a living tent.
While he appreciates not getting regularly shot at like his last tour in Iraq, the infantryman said his desk job is certainly not what he’s used to. Instead of going out on daily missions for a couple hours each day, he is now consumed with juggling the different demands of supporting all of his fellow Soldiers.
Still, Stone says his Soldiers have adapted very well to his new job and has quickly become one of the catalysts for making sure everything within the living areas runs smoothly.
According Sgt. 1st Class Michael Tanner of Johnson City, Tenn., his Soldiers enjoy their work because they get to see tangible results every day, even though much of what they do seldom gets recognized.
“Most of them enjoy it. They like getting out doing hands-on work. They know they’re helping out their fellow Soldiers,” he said.
Spc. Jason Staff, of Boulder, Colo., has the task of supervising a team of Iraqis that provide cleaning services across the base. Despite the lack of glamour, Staff said, he likes his job and enjoys seeing the daily progress.
“I thought I was going to be sitting behind a desk [this tour]. This is a lot better,” he said. “I have a good group of guys, so that makes it a lot easier.”
Like many of the Soldiers in the battalion, Tanner has always been assigned to a line company and is used to going out on patrols every day. Until this tour, he said, he never knew how much work and coordination went into running a forward operating base. Now, he appreciates how challenging it can be with so many moving pieces.
“It’s been a learning experience for me,” he said. “What should be easy can turn into a monster.”
The battalion also has the responsibility of making force protection upgrades across its base. This task primarily involves emplacing 15,000-pound, concrete T-wall barriers and bunkers. The process is ongoing, as COS Garry Owen has received over 300 T-wall barriers on flatbed trucks over the last six weeks. The barriers and bunkers come in from other bases that are in the process of closing.
Once the T-walls arrive, 1st Sgt. Henry Chapman, of Augusta, Ga., supervises their careful placement using a 20,000-pound crane that he calls the workhorse of the base. Soldiers must rig up each barrier with chains so it can be lifted off the truck and into place.
While the crane does the heavy work, the Soldiers, who wear gloves and helmets for safety, find themselves along side the giant slabs, grunting them into the correct position.
“They go to the gym 12-hours a day, if you think of it,” said Chapman. “They’ve left their mark on COS Garry Owen.”
Recently, his team of about five Soldiers worked for three straight days from sun up to sundown placing over 120 T-wall barriers around the new dining facility, providing a critical force protection measure before it was allowed to open.
“We’ve done a lot of noticeable work here on COS Garry Owen,” said Spc. Tim Weber, of Gatesville, Texas.
Pfc. Richard Bales, from Nampa, Idaho, enjoys the fact that he’s learned how to drive several large construction machines, something he never thought he’d do in Iraq. He never had any experience on large equipment before arriving at COS Garry Owen, and since his arrival, he’s been licensed in operating a bulldozer, front-end loader and driving the 20,000-pound crane from one work site to the next.
Chapman says that his team sees its job as one huge enabler, allowing the rest of the task force to execute its advise and assist mission with Iraqi Security Forces.
“When it’s all said and done, they feel like they’re members of a team,” he said. “They know whatever they built today is going to make life better for everyone else.”
| Date Taken: | 06.09.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 06.11.2010 08:47 |
| Story ID: | 51223 |
| Location: | CONTINGENCY OPERATING STATION GARRY OWEN, IQ |
| Web Views: | 263 |
| Downloads: | 163 |
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