Seabees Bring Supplies, Recreation, Safety to Marine Camp
Navy Newsstand
Story Number: NNS030825-02
Release Date: 8/25/2003 9:29:00 AM
By Journalist 1st Class (FMF) Lisa Keding, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 7 Public Affairs
CAMP COMMANDO, Kuwait (NNS) -- In the middle of the Kuwaiti desert, surrounded by a series of large cement structures, sits a boxing ring made and designed by four Seabees last month. A set of bleachers sits in front of the ring where hundreds of Marines from One Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) gathered to watch a boxing match recently, during a recreational day the Marines called "Warrior Day."
The area serves as a gathering place for the Marines and the small group of Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 7, who have been working at Camp Commando since early June.
The group of 21 Seabees has been busy since arriving at the camp, which is the temporary home to more than 1,400 Marines. Sixteen members of the group make up the camp's maintenance department, and the other five Seabees help I MEF Marines with logistics orders that supply all of the Seabee construction projects in Kuwait and Iraq.
Heading the supply team is Lt. Cmdr. Michael Shay, NMCB-7's supply officer. Members of his team arrived in May. Since then, the team has purchased more than $800,000 in construction material.
"We've overseen the purchasing of all the Seabee battalions' construction material in theater," said Shay. "We work very closely with the Marines to carry out and fulfill mission needs for these Seabees and some Army construction needs within the region."
The boxing ring is just one of the recreational items the camp maintenance department has built for the Marines. The group usually stays busy with work requests for camp maintenance projects.
"We've done a variety of things, from fixing floors to making a putting green and boxing ring for the Marines," said Utilitiesman Constructionman Michelle Fraley, who is assigned to the Commando detachment. "We haven't turned down one work order yet."
Fraley added that the Marines submit a handful of requests each day, and the Seabee group provides a 24-hour hotline number for any maintenance emergencies that come up.
"Prior to NMCB-7's arrival, there was a fire on the camp thought to be caused by electrical wiring,'" said Gunnery Sgt. John Darlak, I MEF's tactical safety specialist. "This crew has made the camp electricity issues proactive instead of reactive," said Durlak. "They took an electrical nightmare and made it safer."
In the camp maintenance group, there are construction electricians, builders and utilitiesmen. Almost everyday, the four builders in the group go out to fix wooden floors in berthing and work spaces on the camp.
"It seems like everyday, we get calls to repair two or three floors on camp. I like being here, because I've learned a lot about my rate," explained Builder 3rd Class Cassandra James.
This camp maintenance department is going an extra step to fulfill the Marines' maintenance and recreational needs. They assist with whatever recreational requests the Marines have, as long as they have the supplies to build it. Many times, they use a little ingenuity to improvise for the lack of the right supplies.
One of the Seabees recently created a doorknocker with a piece of metal he found as he was walking around the camp. He installed the device in the one-man armory shop on the camp.
"My crews are doing some interesting things over here," said Utilitiesman 1st Class (SCW) Bizhan Askari, the petty officer in charge of the camp maintenance department.
"We're like a special effects studio over here," he said. "People come to us with the impossible, and we improvise creatively with the scarce materials we have. We are thinking outside of the box here to help complete our mission, but also to make it a little better for the troops."
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