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HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan (1/18/2012) -- Nearly 150
Marines from 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward)'s 9th
Engineer Support Battalion converged in the open Helmand
desert on a dry river bed known as a wadi. They needed to
quickly build a land bridge through the wadi, rushing to
complete the project before the seasonal, heavy monsoon
rains began.
Lance Cpl.'s Zachary Pumpelly and Vincent Myrick, both combat engineers with 9th Engineer Support Battalion, put together a culvert during the construction of a land bridge in the district of Now Zad, Helmand province, Jan. 14,
2012. The building project allows free movement through the riverbed, which normally is not navigable during the rainy season. Route Red is a road that runs from Gereshk to Musa Qalah and is used by coalition forces and Afghans.
Photo by USMC Master Gunnery Sgt. Phil Mehringer |
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The average rainfall for the month of January is more than 6 inches,
while the month of June is typically measured at less than a
quarter-of-an-inch – more than a 2,300 percent increase in
precipitation.
The road, which is known as Route Red, lies
on the western side of the Helmand River and is used to travel north
and south from Gereshk to Musa Qalah. It is rumored to be part of
the original Silk Road, connecting the East to the West centuries
ago and is easily navigated 10 months out of the year with the
exception of the rainy season.
The rapid downpour of rain
and limited ability for the hardened, sun-baked Helmand desert to
absorb the runoff, creates flooding, forcing local civilians and
military vehicles to use an alternate route adding at least 18 miles
to their trip in either direction.
Constructing a wadi
crossing will save time, money and it is expected to facilitate
commerce and traffic |
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to the area. The road is likely to be paved in the near future. |
The construction project is huge, spanning 120 meters, said
Staff Sgt. Aron Szekely from Tampa, Fla., who arrived with
his unit in late November. The scheduled 10-day build has
the Marines working nearly around the clock, “but it looks
like we might finish early,” said Szekely, who is a heavy
equipment operator.
It took several days to prepare a
proper foundation on the river bed to ensure water would not
cause erosion and circumvent the culverts, said Szekely,
before the construction could really begin. There will be a
“hellish flow of water 4-6 feet high” at times according to
the locals, he added.
There will be a total of 28
culverts, spaced equally apart, used for the road. Five
reinforced concrete pipes will be located closer to the
ends, channeling the heavier volume of water, while 36-inch
metal pipes make up the remaining culverts.
With the
foundation properly formed, the culverts were put in place
and the construction site was a buzz of activity. Marines
with shovels redirected debris near the sidewalls building
up the shoulder of the road, while multiple pieces of heavy
equipment moved back and forth from the rock pile. Dump
trucks were loaded, while steel rebar was welded to the
outer ends of the culverts, preventing insurgents from
placing mines or bombs into them.
Once the culverts
were aligned, they were covered with rock material from the
wadi basin, estimated at nearly 100 dump truck loads. Gravel
was placed on top of the culverts to make a rough road,
which was compacted and crowned with a smooth surface.
The difficulty in completing a job like this is the time
constraint and the mere “amount of earthwork we have to do,”
said Capt. Aaron Fischer, engineering officer and site
supervisor from Bloomington, Ill. Fischer, a 2001 Illinois
State University graduate, said the mission could not have
been done without conducting daily logistics runs to Camp
Leatherneck for miscellaneous equipment and supplies, which
was located approximately 57 kilometers or 35 miles from the
job site.
In the last two months, Szekely said he's
worked on about 15 culvert projects, but they were smaller
in scale consisting of only one or two pipes. A project this
size has really tested the equipment and determined, “how
much it can handle,” said Lance Cpl. Gordan Beier, 21, a
heavy equipment operator from Everette, Wash., who is
currently on his second deployment to Afghanistan.
The benefit of the wadi project has already reached the
local community. When they first arrived to the build site,
the Marines visited several residents in the area to ensure
everyone knew what was happening, said Szekely.
They
all appreciated what was about to take place and one of the
civilians said, “It will be much easier for me to get my
family to town and to the hospital now.” In addition to
benefitting local citizens, the road will also connect
several of the outer patrol bases, providing coalition
forces the freedom to navigate the area.
More photos available in frame below
By USMC Master Gunnery Sgt. Phil Mehringer
2nd Marine Logistics Group
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2012
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