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NMCB 1 Seabees Launch Medium Girder Bridge

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS070130-13
Release Date: 1/30/2007 5:00:00 PM

By Mass Communications Specialist 2nd Class Demetrius Kennon, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 1 Public Affairs

GULFPORT, Miss. (NNS) -- Seabees attached to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 1 launched a medium girder bridge (MGB) Jan. 25 as part of a two-week class at the Contingency Construction Crew Training (CCCT) facility at Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, Miss.

Builder 2nd Class Cliff Ainsworth, lead instructor for the MGB class, explained that an MGB is a contingency bridge that the Marines and Army use during wartime as it is the fastest method for them to clear a gap.

“The military load rating of the MGB is 70 tons,” said Ainsworth. “The size and type of bridge you’re building is going to determine the weight class. We have three different types of bridges; a single-story, a double-story, and a double-story with link reinforcements.”

All three bridge types are used in a contingency environment, each with a slightly different purpose.

Crew leaders, E-5 and above, go through the first week of class; during the second week, the crew leaders pass down the knowledge they received from the instructors to the crew members, while the instructors stand by to offer guidance, said Ainsworth.

“After the first week, the crew leaders are responsible for teaching the crew members how to build the bridge,” he said. “We back off and let them teach, but we’re there to support them and help them out when they need it.”

Each class has a minimum of 12 crew leaders and 30 crew members, Ainsworth said.

At the end of the first week, the crew leaders are required to pass a 50-question exam, while the crew members that join in the second week are required to successfully build an MGB under the crew leaders’ supervision.

“The crew leaders did their best,” said Engineering Aid 3rd Class Sean Barezi, a crew member in the MGB class attached to NMCB 1. “The first day we had minor communication problems, but by the next day everybody knew what they had to do.”

“For the battalion, this training will help us out during our field exercises (FEX), because we’ll have an MGB mission,” he said. “Also on deployment, if we’re sent to a war zone, it’s possible we’ll have to build an MGB or take one down after the Marines have used it.”

“The main reason the Seabees take this class is not to learn how to build a bridge, but to learn how to take it down,” said Ainsworth.

“The Army and the Marine Corps come in, put the bridge up quickly, then they move ahead,” he said. “They go and fight the war. The Seabees come in, take the bridge apart, then either put in a more permanent bridge or fill in the gap however they see fit.

NMCB 1 returned from their last deployment in December, but continue to train to build and fight. The knowledge that the Seabees received on the medium girder bridge will give them a jump-start as they begin preparations for their next deployment in October.