Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Glenn Sierra | Engineers of Detachment 1, 623rd Engineer Company, Task Force Roughneck, TF Sword,...... read more read more
KUNDUZ PROVINCE, Afghanistan - U.S. Army soldiers from Detachment 1, 623rd Engineer Company, Task Force Roughneck, Task Force Sword, near completion of the new Combat Outpost Shir Khan in record time July 26. The biggest challenge the engineers faced was working under extreme heat.
“Everybody is working together and working really hard,” explained Staff Sgt. Tracey Rapp with Det. 1, 623rd Eng. Company, horizontal construction supervisor from Augusta, Ga. “We were constantly trying to stay hydrated and safe.”
The shell of COP Shir Khan was built in two phases. In the first phase, the horizontal engineers created the landscape, built the walls, and installed waste tanks with bucket loaders, road graters, and bulldozers. The second phase consisted of the vertical engineers (masons, carpenters, plumbers and electricians) building cement pads, erecting tents and structures, then installing lights and air-conditioning.
“When we got here, there was nothing here. It was our job to set up and fill the Hescos (dirt filled containers). It took 11 million pounds of dirt to fill them up,” said Sgt. Lindsay Fowler with Det. 1, 623rd Eng. Company, a heavy equipment operator from Douglasville, Ga. “I was digging out the bottom of the hole so we can set in a new waste tank. Once that’s in, they’ll put in a kitchen and start cooking hot food.”
The U.S. Army contracted with local Afghan companies to haul in the cement. “We’re pouring the pads to put full-size Alaskan tents on. We’ll do small ones for the A/C units to sit on and then hook up the electricity,” explained Pfc. Jonathan Foster with Det. 1, 623rd Eng. Company, a masonry specialist from Omaha, Neb. “My biggest frustration is the cement deliveries. I prefer to pour early in the morning or late in the evening. It’s really hard to keep it from cracking right now because we poured it at midday.”
While describing their experiences and frustrations, the soldiers of Det. 1 displayed a sense of pride and accomplishment. “We’ll soon set up latrines with showers, sinks and toilets. I’d rather come out here and work in the middle of nowhere, where I feel like I’m helping the guys,” concluded Staff. Sgt. Brett Yochum with Det 1, 623rd Eng. Company, vertical supervisor from Ashland, Neb. “It’s been all [meals ready to eat] out here. Showering with bottled water. We live in a tent with no air conditioning. Every day last week was about 117 degrees; but you know, this isn’t about us or what we went through. It’s about completing this COP for the greater goal in the near future.”
| Date Taken: | 07.30.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 09.30.2011 01:59 |
| Story ID: | 77802 |
| Location: | KUNDUZ, AF |
| Web Views: | 268 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Engineers build frontier outpost in Northern Afghanistan, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
