ROWPU teams turn mud into clean water

Courtesy Photo | Sgt. Billy Turner, of the 186th Quartermaster detachment, checks the operational status of a reverse osmosis water purification unit at Camp Al Taqqadum.  

AL TAQADDUM, IRAQ

04.28.2006

Courtesy Story

207th Public Affairs Detachment

CAMP AL TAQQADUM, Iraq - Some Soldiers may look at a thick puddle of sludge and look for nothing more than a way around it. The Soldiers of the 186th Quartermaster Detachment see the same puddle and look for a way to turn it into clean drinking water.

The self-described "Water Dawgs" use Reverse Osmosis Water Purification Units (ROWPUs) to transform any source of water into a healthy, refreshing drink for coalition forces.

With purification operations from Combat Outpost North to Camps Habbinyah, Ramadi, and Corregidor, the Soldiers of the 186th at Camp Al Taqqadum focus their support efforts on supply and repair.

"We make sure the ROWPUs are up and running," said Sgt. Billy Turner, an assistant squad leader with the 186th. "If we have ROWPUs down, we get them up and working right away in case another [forward operating base] needs one, we can get it out to them right away."

Turner said the ROWPUs are versatile machines, capable of operating in nearly any environment.

"The ROWPUs can pretty much suck mud from one end and purified water will come out the other end," Turner said. "You can put it in the nastiest, most bacteria infested stream or lake, suck water out of it, and it will come out as clean as can be."

"We inventory the ROWPUs and inventory the chemicals to distribute to other FOBs for the water teams," said Sgt. Rachel Andrews, a water purification specialist with the 186th. "We give them a monthly supply, but if they run out, we supply them with what they need at that time."

"Fixing the equipment that comes in from Corregidor takes up a lot of our time," said Andrews. "The site that they're on is pretty bad because of the weather and the water source really tears up the ROWPUs."

She said the 186th rotates the ROWPUs through the FOBs. If one team brings a unit back for repair, they are given a replacement unit to use while the broken unit receives maintenance.

"It's probably the hardest part of the job. On average, we make three repairs a month for Corregidor's equipment," Andrews said. "We do about one repair a month for the other FOBs."

Sgt. Jorge Ordonez, an assistant platoon sergeant for the 186th, said maintenance is always a priority for the water dawgs.

"The maintenance guys help us out, but they don't always have enough people, so sometimes we have to fix things ourselves," Ordonez said. "They help a lot, though."

Ordonez said some of the equipment wears out because of the high tempo of the operation. Keeping the equipment running is a priority for the water dawgs at Taqqadum.

"The high pressure pumps can take a couple of days to fix. Also, the system generators can get messed up because of the dust and the weather," Ordonez said. "The pipes break too, because the water sources are bad. We try to have all of the parts here so that when something needs to be replaced we can make it happen."

Staff Sgt. Frank Langford, a platoon sergeant for the 186th, said that in addition to the missions the unit sustains, they also take on special projects.

"We just completed two water missions, one at Iskandariyah and one at Duke," Langford said. "We were purifying water for the 3rd Infantry Division and the 109th Infantry Regiment. At both sites, we purified a total of 30,000 gallons of water."

Langford said that was just a drop in the bucket compared to the total amount of water the 186th has purified through all of their missions to date.

"All total, we've done about 15 million gallons," said Langford. "Once we get a good source, we're pretty much good to go."

He said he's proud of the work his Soldiers are doing in Iraq.

"They're doing outstanding. Everyone is keeping a positive attitude," Langford said. "They're making water, making the mission happen. They're also learning stuff far above their level. Not just training, but doing the mission."

The water dawgs said they enjoy their mission and recognize its importance to the coalition. Andrews said she feels like she is contributing to the overall mission in Iraq through her work with the 186th.

"Water is a central necessity for Soldiers in Iraq," said Andrews. "Of course we contribute a lot."

She said she gets a good feeling from the work she does to support coalition forces.

"I enjoy working with my squad. We went on a mission to a hot zone, and it keeps us motivated every day," Andrews said.

"Some of these Soldiers are in worse places than we've been to. Knowing that we're helping them out is probably the best part of our job."

• Date Taken: 04.28.2006
• Date Posted: 04.28.2006 09:45
• Story ID: 6153
• Location: AL TAQADDUM, IQ